BENGALURU: Four people of a family allegedly vandalised a private hospital on Jigani Link Road around 7.30 pm Saturday over ‘delay in treatment’. Following the incident, shocked doctors, nurses and paramedical staff at the hospital are now said to be reluctant to return to work.
A two-year-old child had suffered a cut on the tongue after a fall and was brought to ACE-Suhas Hospital by the family and relatives. According to Dr Jagadish Hiremath, CEO of the hospital, the staff attended to the patient and cleaned up the wound.
As it required stitches, the staff called for the surgeon who had already gone back home. By the time the surgeon arrived, the family and relatives vandalised the hospital. Dr Hiremath said, “There is a standard operating procedure wherein the family needs to fill a form and the patient is sent to casualty ward for checks. This took some time as the staff strength has reduced.
After the initial process, we had to call the surgeon to return and we asked the family to wait for 10 more minutes. The surgeon just took 10 minutes to arrive, but by then they vandalised the hospital. All of them were drunk.” Furniture and flower pots were thrown and glass items broken, the hospital staff said. One of them even claimed that she was abused by the family.
“They used foul language and I was so scared. I’m still not over the traumatic incident and do not want to resume work. They even threatened not to leave anyone,” said a staffer. Dr Hiremath said the hospital also has Covid patients and now the staff are scared to work. “Already, more than 20 staffers, including doctors and nurses, have left due to Covid-19 fear. After this incident of vandalism, our staffers are scared. They do not want to continue to work. I have been talking to them and counselling them.
They are demanding some sort of protection from the police,” he said. Dr Hiremath has lodged a complaint at the Jigani police station. “A case of vandalism was filed against Satish, a daily-wage worker, and his relatives. However, there was not assault on the staff. We are yet to arrest the accused,” a police officer said.