Republican lawmaker asks UI to fire pediatric fellow for postelection comments on X

The chair of the Iowa House Education Appropriations Committee on Thursday afternoon called on University of Iowa President Barbara Wilson to terminate a UI Health Care fellow for a comment he posted on X following the presidential election.

In his appeal to Wilson — sent with Iowa Legislature letterhead — Rep. Carter Nordman, R-Adel, called Dr. Mayank Sharma’s response to a post on X, “repulsive, deeply unprofessional, and not representative of the world-class operations at UI Health Care.”

Although Sharma’s account has been deleted, Nordman quoted the offensive comments in his letter — asserting Sharma wrote, “Well I hope you lose your kid in a school shooting, already you have nothing to lose, it won’t matter to you anyway! Prepare for your kids funeral.”

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In his letter, Nordman said he believes Sharma’s comments are a clear violation of the section of Iowa Administrative Code that bars disruptive, threatening, and contentious behavior that interferes with — or could interfere with — patient care or the effective functioning of health care staff.

“Additionally, Dr. Sharma’s statement violates the American Medical Association Code of Ethics,” he wrote, noting the university is required to notify the Iowa Board of Medicine about any investigation into trainees.

“I also question Dr. Sharma’s mental health,” Nordman wrote, “And he should update the Iowa Board of Medicine on his ability to engage in practice and provide patients with safe and healthful care.”

In response to a question from The Gazette, UI Health Care spokesman Taylor Vessel said, “The university is aware of the situation and is reviewing the matter in accordance with our policies. The University of Iowa strongly objects to violence.”

On the UI Health Care website, Sharma is listed as a member of the UI Pediatric Cardiology Fellowship Team in a nationally-recognized training program “with a strong record of developing leaders in the field of pediatric cardiology.”

Medical fellows are doctors who’ve finished medical school and residency and are fully credentialed -- but want additional, optional training in a subspecialty. On WebMD and other medical sites, Sharma is listed as having graduated from the Calcutta National Medical College in West Bengal, India in 2015 and then finishing his residency at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami and Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, NY.

Although Sharma’s comment has been deleted, he appears to have been responding to a message “to all Democrats” from Farzad Mesbahi, who previously worked as an analyst and program manager for Tesla and now has a YouTube channel covering the auto market, electric vehicles, and self-driving cars.

Nordman in his letter to President Wilson said she should terminate Sharma’s employment “to assure Iowans that they can receive proper care from our state hospital, no matter their personal political beliefs or who they voted for.”

“Maintaining his employment sends the wrong message to Iowans, who have resoundingly voted for President Trump three times,” Nordman wrote.

“I, of course, am no doctor, but Dr. Sharma clearly suffers from ‘Trump Derangement Syndrome’,” he said. “For him to be this unsettled by a presidential election and to, in response, direct anger toward and wish death upon another person, severely worries me about his ability to maintain the proper mental capacity to work with Iowa children, learn from Iowa doctors, or be paid by Iowa taxpayers.”

Nordman asked he be updated on her decision of whether to investigate.

“While we all respect the first amendment and work to ensure no one's constitutional rights are ever violated, this goes well beyond ‘disagreeing’ with a political figure. He wished death upon children based on their parents' political beliefs. A clear violation of every code of conduct.”

Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.

Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com