Saint Louis University
ST. LOUIS — A physician has filed a lawsuit against St. Louis University School of Medicine alleging she was subjected to sex discrimination, harassment and retaliation that ultimately led to her constructive discharge and hindered her ability to practice medicine.
The complaint, filed by Dr. Faezeh Razjouyan, asserts claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.
Razjouyan, a Missouri resident, began working as an Interventional Radiology Fellow at the university on Nov. 1, 2022, and remained in that position until April 26, 2023, when she says she was constructively discharged, according to a complaint filed Aug. 12 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.
The complaint alleges that Razjouyan, who performed her job duties satisfactorily, was paid below the level typically associated with her experience and subjected to repeated sexist remarks, verbal abuse and unfair treatment from supervising physicians, including Section Chief and Program Director Dr. Kirubahara Vaheesan and other attending doctors.
The filing describes multiple incidents in which male attendings allegedly yelled at Razjouyan, belittled her abilities, and made inappropriate comments.
On Nov. 18, 2022, attending physician Dr. David Owens allegedly forced her to place a chest port in a patient while her license was pending, telling her to “be a good little girl,” and later shouting profanities at her and ordering her out of the procedure.
In another incident on Nov. 29, 2022, Drs. Jerome Kao and Keith Pereira allegedly instructed her to perform a procedure without a valid training license, with Dr. Kao stating she should show him how to perform it because she had done it before.
Razjouyan claims she was then told by Pereira to lie to the Chief Medical Officer and omit information about her unlicensed procedures when reporting to the Board of Healing Arts.
The lawsuit alleges further sexist comments by Dr. Xavier Packianathan, including saying a woman’s job is to “be in the kitchen,” and instances where both Packianathan and Vaheesan referred to Razjouyan as their “slave.”
Vaheesan is also accused of spreading false statements about her qualifications, including claims that she did not finish her residency at Emory University, left her program at Penn University after six months, and suffered from short gut syndrome, which Razjouyan claims damaged her reputation and were knowingly false.
Razjouyan reported the alleged discrimination and harassment to the Graduate Medical Education House Staff Coordinator, Rosie Williams, on Dec. 6, 2022, and later to Lisa Israel from the Professionalism Office and Dr. Ghalaza Hayat at the GME office.
Despite these complaints, the lawsuit states that the university failed to take effective remedial action.
Instead, after she raised concerns, she was disciplined, falsely accused of unprofessional behavior, placed on leave and ultimately pushed out of her position.
The complaint details how during her leave, officials suggested transferring her to another department to avoid her participation in an upcoming accreditation site visit.
After her departure, Razjouyan alleges that the university made false statements to the Missouri Board of Healing Arts, answering “Yes” to a question about whether she had any condition impairing her ability to practice medicine, despite knowing no such condition existed.
These statements, she claims, created obstacles to obtaining a license in Missouri and led to at least one retracted job offer.
Razjouyan asserts that the university’s conduct, including false and defamatory statements to prospective employers claiming she had anger issues, professionalism problems and difficulty getting along with others, was undertaken with “malice, willfulness and reckless indifference.”
She is seeking damages for the alleged discrimination, retaliation and harm to her professional reputation. She is represented by Nicole A. Matlock of Kennedy Hunt in St. Louis.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri case number: 4:25-cv-01215
