Serge Rasskazoff, MD, recently submitted his letter of resignation to Watertown, N.Y.-based Samaritan Medical Center officials. Dr. Rasskazoff was the hospital's only neurosurgeon on staff, the Watertown Daily Times reports.
A spokesperson for the 290-bed hospital told the Watertown Daily Times she could not say why Dr. Rasskazoff — who began working at the hospital in April 2016 — tendered his resignation, but said he plans to "[pursue] another opportunity."
The hospital began expanding its neurosurgery department in 2013 with an initial investment of more than $1 million. The spokesperson said officials planned to hire a second neurosurgeon to the department, but negotiations ultimately fell through.
Dr. Rasskazoff's resignation, which goes into effect at the end of February 2018, also leaves the city of Watertown with only one practicing neurosurgeon, the report states.