Embattled former UW child abuse pediatrician resigns Alaska position

The embattled head of Alaska’s statewide child abuse forensic clinic — who also left the University of Wisconsin under a cloud of controversy — will soon resign, Providence Alaska Medical Center said.

Alaska CARES medical director’s Dr. Barbara Knox “has chosen to pursue other opportunities and will be resigning,” Providence spokesman Mikal Canfield said in a written statement. The final day for Knox, who “asked to resign,” will be April 1, Canfield said.

Knox did not respond to a request for an interview.

Her resignation comes days after the Anchorage Daily News and Wisconsin Watch published the story of Emily and Justin Acker, a Fairbanks-area military family who said Knox misdiagnosed their newborn daughter’s brain injuries as abuse, leading them to lose custody of their two children for most of a year.

Experts hired by the Ackers found Knox’s diagnosis of abusive head trauma was wrong and ignored Izabel’s serious birth injuries. A forensic psychologist found Emily Acker no danger to her children — and a judge agreed.

It wasn’t the first time Knox’s medical judgment and workplace behavior had been scrutinized. In November, Providence said it had launched an investigation into Alaska CARES after a wave of departures that included every member of the medical staff other than Knox. At the time, Providence said it was “aware of increasing concerns about the workplace environment” of the clinic.

Former clinic employees said they had made dozens of complaints over the course of months to Providence management about what they described as bullying and unprofessional behavior by Knox, with no response.

Providence declined to answer questions about the outcome or findings of the investigation, citing the confidentiality of personnel records.

Before becoming medical director of Alaska CARES in 2019, Knox left her position leading the Child Protection Program at American Family Children’s Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin, after being placed on paid leave while the university investigated allegations she’d intimidated and bullied colleagues who disagreed with her. Knox’s parting settlement agreement, uncovered by Wisconsin Watch, meant future employers, like Providence, and medical credentialing boards didn’t know the details of why she had left the UW.