FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — "It was a very traumatic experience. Nobody that worked there explained anything to me," one patient recalls from their time in the Northwest Health Behavioral Unit.
The patient is just one of dozens of clients represented by Odom Law Firm. Lawsuits filed against Rogers psychiatrist Dr. Brian Hyatt allege he unlawfully coerced, abused, and held patients against their will within the Behavioral Unit.
The patient checked themself in there in 2021 because they experienced suicidal thoughts after being sexually assaulted. But to their shock, they say that they didn't receive any counseling or medical attention during their time there to help them heal.
"Some of the other things that I saw happen to other patients, you didn't want that to happen to you," the patient said. "So you kind of just follow the rules and listen to what you're being told to do because they didn't hide what they were doing to other patients."
The patient said that the individuals caring for the patients were medical technicians and nurses. Throughout their nine-day long stay, they say that they never once met Dr. Hyatt.
"I believe that they antagonize people, they got entertainment out of seeing what I and other patients were going through in there," the patient explains.
Odom Law Firm Attorney Monte Sharits says a judge ruled to get rid of the statute of limitations for these cases, allowing them to help patients dating all the way back to 2018.
"Now we have over 140 clients. And the remarkable thing about their story is how similar they are to everyone else's story that we've visited with. I mean, it's gotten to the point now where we can finish their sentences, these people that we just met for the first time," Sharits said.
Along with over 90 civil lawsuits already filed, Dr. Hyatt has two pending criminal charges of Medicaid fraud.
Sharits says he believes Dr. Hyatt held patients against their will illegally to carry out the fraudulent billing scheme.
"These people went and got the help. They were preyed upon for having done that, and this is a predatory practice that was in place," Sharits said. "They believed that they could do this to these patients, because they'd never be able to advocate for themselves. And if they tried, no one would believe them."
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