New York

Patients Detail Alleged Abuse by Rockefeller University Hospital Pediatrician

Former patients of a well-known Upper East Side pediatrician are detailing decades-old allegations of abuse. 

The late Dr. Reginald Archibald worked at Rockefeller University Hospital from the 1940s until his retirement in 1982. Archibald studied childhood growth and many alleged victims, mostly boys, said they participated in a free growth study. He died in 2007. 

Two attorneys represent more than 100 alleged victims and said they believe there are hundreds of victims in total. 

Two of the alleged victims talked to NsBC 4 New York. They said their visits to Archibald started with the doctor asking them to get naked, then he would lock the door. 

Mitchell Scher, who took part in a growth study in the 1960s, said the doctor would have him sit in his lap. 

"He fondled me," Scher said. "He would play with genitals and stuff."

Another man, who asked to remain anonymous, described a secretary knocking on the door while he was sitting on Archibald's lap. The doctor quickly had him stand up and unlock the door, then whispered to the secretary. 

Both men said the doctor took photos of them naked. The attorneys for both men said they want to know where those photos are, but the hospital hasn't provided information. 

The hospital said it learned of allegations in 2004. In the last two weeks, it sent a letter to patients to inform them. 

"We are appalled to hear those accounts of Dr. Archibald's behavior," the hospital said in a statement. "We deeply regret pain and suffering caused to any of Dr. Archibald's former patients."

But an attorney for dozens of the victims said the hospital should have done more. 

"I think they had enough information they could've stopped it in its course," attorney Jennifer Freeman said. 

The hospital didn't respond to questions about why it took so long to inform former patients about the allegations against Archibald. 

Rockefeller University Hospital has offered to pay for counseling and started a victim therapy fund. 

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