Abortion doctor in Sharp Healthcare clothing

Dr. Robert Santella, an abortionist for Family Planning Associates on Miramar Road, has no affiliation with Sharp Healthcare, according to a statement issued by the hospital last week. A video recorded in June prompted Sharp to make the declaration.

Recorded by pastor Zephaniah Mel of Escondido's Christ Bible Church, the video shows Santella coming out of the Miramar clinic’s front doors and confronting Mel, who stands preaching outside of the clinic.

At the beginning of the encounter, Santella breathes on Mel and says, “Stinky breath!” When Mel refers to Santella’s work as "killing babies," Santella responds, “I love it, I love it!” After Mel tells Santella that he thinks Santella has a “darkened heart,” Santella gets within inches of Mel and says, “I do have a darkened heart — yeah! I do, I do — very, very much so!”

Allyson Smith, a local pro-lifer, emailed Sharp Healthcare on June 17th because she noticed that Santella was wearing a Sharp identification badge in the video. Smith received an email from Sharp soon after that stated they were looking into the matter.

In a statement emailed to the Reader on July 22nd, Sharp claims that Santella has not been associated with their hospitals since 2014.

“He is not employed by our affiliated medical groups,” the statement reads, “and he does not practice or have admitting privileges at any of our facilities.” Sharp states that it is “unclear” why Santella was wearing their badge, adding that they asked him “to promptly return it, which he did.”

Santella's recorded outburst occurred less than one month after the California Medical Board filed a complaint that requests the revocation of Santella’s medical license. In the complaint, filed on May 20th, the board accuses Santella of “gross negligence,” prescribing “dangerous drugs” without proper examination of his patients, and failure “to maintain adequate and accurate records.”

Mel claims that a police sergeant, a clinic worker, and a security guard who work outside of Family Planning Associates said that Santella has not been employed by the clinic since the June 13 posting of the video on YouTube.

(corrected 8/1, 4:35 a.m.)