Raiganj, Uttar Dinajpur, West Bengal: After the death of a patient at Raiganj Government Medical College and Hospital (RGMCH), two doctors, including a woman doctor, and a nurse on duty were allegedly abused and assaulted by the relatives of the deceased patient. The RGMCH authorities filed a complaint with Raiganj police. According to police Nurneha Khatun, a 62-year-old woman from the Kumarjol area of Raiganj, was admitted to the hospital on Sunday with water accumulation in her abdomen and she passed away on Monday night. “As the news spread, around 15 people walked into the female medicine ward. They abused me and two doctors, including a lady doctor, and assaulted us, accusing us of negligence in treatment,” said Ishita Jana, the nurse who was beaten up. Ishita alleged that at that time there were no security personnel in the ward. “The police reached much later. The incident has again proved how insecure we are in our workplace, particularly during evening and night hours,” she added.
Dattatreya Mukherjee, one of the doctors heckled and assaulted by the group, said the authorities should immediately enhance security at the hospital campus. Subsequently, the junior doctors of the RGMCH resorted to protests. They walked into the chamber of the medical superintendent-cum-vice principal and demonstrated, demanding appropriate steps to prevent such incidents from occurring. The incident has prompted Bidyut Bandyopadhyay, the MSVP-in-charge, to file a complaint with the police. “We have spoken with senior police officers and have asked them to take appropriate steps,” he said. Md Nazim, the deceased patient’s son, however, denied the charges. “We simply wanted to know what led to the sudden death of my mother because her condition had improved after she was admitted to the hospital. The nurse, however, tried to create a ruckus in the ward and is making baseless allegations,” Nazim said.
Officers at the Raiganj police station said they acted on the complaint and arrested Md Kayum and Arif Sarkar in connection with the incident. “Our officers are gathering more information about the incident. The guilty will be arrested,” said a senior police officer. Later in the day, the officers met the doctors and the paramedical staff. It was decided that the number of police personnel would be increased at the RGMCH campus. “Women police personnel will also be posted on the campus. They will visit different wards at regular intervals,” the officer added.
