ST. LOUIS — A federal court filing has shed light on an alleged civil rights lawsuit brought by a Greek national and neurosurgery resident, who alleges he was subjected to years of coercive labor, retaliation and national origin discrimination while training at SSM Saint Louis University Hospital.
Dr. Georgios Alexopoulos, was involuntarily dismissed from the hospital’s neurosurgery residency program on July 8, 2024, just months before completing a grueling seven-year training regimen.
According to the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, Alexopoulos entered the SLU neurosurgery residency program in 2018 after an exceptional extension of his J-1 visa from the U.S. Department of State.
This rare nine-year visa extension tied him exclusively to the SLU program, leaving him without viable alternatives to continue his training in the United States.
The complaint asserts that this dependency was weaponized by the program’s leadership, subjecting him to exploitative working conditions under threat of termination and deportation.
Before coming to SLU, Alexopoulos had already completed medical school and a European Union-approved neurosurgery residency in Greece, followed by further U.S. training in general surgery and pediatric neurosurgery.
He alleges that his prior experience made him a target, as he was assigned responsibilities beyond those typically expected of residents. These included clinical and administrative duties often left to attending physicians or paid staff.
Named defendants in the case include Program Director Dr. Jeroen Coppens and Division Chief Dr. Philippe Mercier, who are accused of systematically exploiting Alexopoulos’ immigration status.
The complaint details how Coppens referred to the residency program as a “prison” and to Alexopoulos as the “chief prisoner,” while allegedly forcing him to perform administrative tasks such as drafting standardized documentation and even signing notes on behalf of absent physicians—actions that may violate HIPAA regulations.
The residency program, the complaint asserts, was plagued by chronic understaffing, which worsened after another senior resident, Dr. Ryan Cleary, left the program in 2022 citing its toxic environment.
Unlike Cleary, who was able to transfer programs as a U.S. citizen, Alexopoulos remained trapped due to his visa constraints, the complain stated.
From mid-2022 onward, he was left to run the neurosurgery service nearly alone, shouldering more than 15 senior on-call shifts per month and being denied the elective and research years mandated by national training standards.
Throughout his residency, Alexopoulos reported multiple patient safety issues, including wrong-site surgeries and postoperative complications.
Despite internally and externally raising concerns — including with the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission — he alleges that SLU administrators responded with retaliation. He was repeatedly threatened with termination and labeled the “ringleader” of resident dissent, leading to further isolation and excessive workloads.
In 2023, Alexopoulos filed an EEOC complaint after what he described as a humiliating incident related to his national origin.
In response, he says administrators attempted to build a false narrative of unprofessionalism against him, even fabricating claims that were later retracted with written apologies. Remarks allegedly made by Coppens and Mercier included comments on his Greek accent and cultural background, such as, “You should better return back to your home country,” and jokes about Greeks being “warm-blooded,” which the plaintiff argues perpetuated harmful ethnic stereotypes.
Despite these challenges, Alexopoulos continued to speak out, including participating in the ACGME’s 2024 annual survey. Following that anonymous evaluation, the neurosurgery program received one of the lowest ratings nationwide and was issued a formal accreditation warning.
According to the complaint, the program’s leadership then accused Alexopoulos of trying to “shut the program down,” leading to his abrupt dismissal just weeks later.
Alexopoulos claims his termination came at a time of personal crisis — his mother had just been found bedridden in Greece, following his father’s recent death. Unaware of his rights under the Family and Medical Leave Act, he did not request leave, fearing further retaliation.
Instead, on June 6, 2024, he was called into a meeting and placed on academic probation without prior notice. He was also asked to resume chief resident duties, despite already having served longer in that role than any neurosurgery resident nationwide.
“This might be the first time in program history that a resident on probation was asked to serve in such a leading role, further underscoring the arbitrary and retaliatory nature of the program’s actions,” the complaint states. “Academic probation was imposed with the clear intent of precipitating Plaintiff’s expulsion from the residency program and irreparably damaging his career prospects in neurosurgery.”
Alexopoulos alleges SLU Hospital and its neurosurgery residency program systematically violated ACGME standards and institutional policies by placing him on retaliatory academic probation without due process.
Deprived of proper notice and appeal rights, he was coerced into continued service under hostile conditions.
After submitting a resignation under duress — later rescinded — Alexopoulos was unlawfully terminated while on approved FMLA leave caring for his ailing mother.
Despite his continued residency status being acknowledged for weeks, the hospital retroactively accepted his resignation to justify dismissal. His termination, unsupported by legal or procedural grounds, destroyed his career prospects in both the U.S. and abroad, as SLU refused to provide critical certification or submit his board eligibility paperwork.
The complaint states that federal agencies have since launched investigations, and the ACGME issued a formal warning, validating his claims of systemic abuse.
The fallout led to Alexopoulos facing deportation, bankruptcy and severe mental health decline.
He remains unable to practice medicine despite completing all training requirements.
He is seeking compensatory and punitive damages. He is represented by Alan G. Crone and Alexander Gass of the Crone Law Firm in Memphis Tenn.
