A 45-year-old patient was referred from a private clinic in Ujjain to Mahajan Yashwantrao Hospital (MYH), Indore, on Saturday, October 28, 2023. The patient has multiple injuries, including a bone fracture sustained in a road traffic accident. While treating the patient in the emergency department, doctors discovered that the patient had a history of an infectious disease called HIV and was currently suffering from it. Dr. Akash Kaushal, a second-year resident medical officer (RSO) from the 22nd batch, expressed anger toward the patient and their relatives for not disclosing the truth about the patient's HIV status before treatment. In a viral video, a junior doctor can be seen repeatedly slapping the patient and verbally abusing them while on a stretcher. Another doctor attempted to intervene, but the junior doctor lost their temper and continued to slap the patient.
Witnesses present in the ward recorded the entire incident on video.
After the video went viral, the junior doctor was immediately suspended from all duties in the emergency department by the Head of the Department (HOD) of the Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology and was reassigned to the artificial limb fitting department until further notice.
MYH (Maharaja Yeshwantrao Hospital) is affiliated with Indore Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College, whose dean, Dr. Sanjay Dixit, released a statement assuring that a three-member committee would be formed to investigate the case within three days and submit a report. Further action will be taken against the accused after the report is submitted.
The patient's attendant also filed a complaint with the Chief Minister's helpline. According to the attendant, the patient was referred from a private clinic in Ujjain to Mahatma Yashwantrao Hospital (MYH), Indore, for treatment of a broken bone, and it was later revealed that the patient had a preexisting HIV condition. The doctor was immediately suspended for his actions.
(Input from various media sources)
(Rehash/Bittu Babulalji Agrawal)