More sexual, unprofessional misconduct claims filed against Richland doctor

The Washington Medical Commission has added alleged incidents involving six patients to a statement of charges against Dr. Mark Mulholland of Richland.

The amended statement of charges accuses him of violating state codes related to physician sexual misconduct, in addition to earlier allegations of physician abuse and unprofessional conduct.

The medical commission in its original statement of charges in late April 2025 outlined alleged incidents of three patients, bringing the total number of patients in the revised charges to nine. Patient names are redacted in publicly available copies of the statements.

Mulholland, who worked at Associated Physicians for Women — Kadlec Clinic in Richland, has had a Washington state medical license since 1999. He is not practicing at the Kadlec obstetrics and gynecology clinic, according to a recent statement from Kadlec.

The Washington Medical Commission and Mulholland reached an agreement in September on an interim order that prohibits him from practicing medicine with any patient who is female, including practicing as a consultant with no patient contact.

Mulholland is accused by the medical commission of lacking appropriate boundaries with patients.

“Respondent’s behaviors toward patients and staff have often been rationalized, normalized and minimized, resulting in patient and staff complaints being dismissed and not taken seriously,” said the statement of charges.

Mulholland is accused of implied sexual comments about patients’ vaginas and body shaming them. He has also made inappropriate comments toward female staff, such as commenting on their weight, asking them to show him their breasts or inquiring about whether they planned to cheat on their husband, according to the statement of charges.

Mulholland patient allegations

The updated charging document includes these cases:

• In June 2023, a woman who had uterine tissue removed by another doctor was seen by Mulholland. The patient became uncomfortable with the way Mulholland was using his fingers in an internal exam and asked him to stop several times before he did, according to the statement of charges.

• During a pelvic exam of a patient in May 2024, Mulholland grabbed the patient’s leg above the knee and used his fingers in a way that caused her pain in a pelvic examination, according to the statement of charges. The patient also complained that Mulholland advised her to use “sex toys” without telling her partner and showed her on his phone where to buy them, according to the medical commission allegations.

• Mulholland commented on a patient’s vagina in May 2020 in ways not related to a legitimate medical purpose and said her husband should be pleased, following reconstructive surgery the doctor performed, according to the statement of charges. He also asked her to call him on his personal cell phone with information about the size of her husband’s genitals to help him with future surgery, according to the statement of charges.

• A patient who was having pain and difficulty getting pregnant said that in April 2024 Mulholland grabbed her stomach and said it hurt because she was fat, according to the statement of charges. He asked specific questions related to sexual activity with her partner in a way that made the patient uncomfortable and that did not seem to have a legitimate medical purpose, according to the statement of charges. The patient also had concerns about an internal exam performed by Mulholland.

• In September 2017 Mulholland performed an internal exam without wearing gloves, according to the statement of charges. He then said “oops” and put on gloves, it said. The charging document also said that he grabbed the patient’s inner thigh and told her to relax. The patient also said that when Mulholland entered the exam room he commented on her weight and eating habits in an embarrassing way, according to the document.

• In January 2023 Mulholland commented on a patient’s vagina while she was lying on an examination table with her feet in the stirrups. Mulholland asked if her husband wanted to hear a joke and then shouted into the patient’s vagina and acted like there was an echo, according to the statement of charges. The patient “was mortified,” the document said.

The three cases in the initial statement of charges made allegations similar to some of those in the added cases, including allegations about how Mulholland performed internal exams, comments he made about patients’ vaginas and questions he made about the patients’ or their partners sexual activity unrelated to a legitimate medical purpose.

The interim order restricting Mulholland’s practice stands until licensing charges of unprofessional conduct are resolved.

Mulholland negotiated with the commission to reach agreement on the interim order. He denies allegations, according to his attorney.

In addition to Washington Medical Commission charges, multiple civil lawsuits have been filed in the last year against Mulholland and/or Kadlec in King County Superior Court.

Mulholland’s attorney for Washington Medical Commission proceedings did not immediately respond to a Tri-City Herald request for comment about the revised statement of charges.

Kadlec said it cannot comment on allegations that are part of an ongoing Department of Health investigation, other than to say that it takes its patients’ safety seriously and is fully cooperating with the state on the matter.

This story was originally published January 11, 2026 at 5:00 AM.