Nurses thrash doctor for ‘molesting’ colleague

Sanjay Bumbroo

Tribune News Service

Panchkula, July 14

Nurses and women staff of the Civil Hospital in Panchkula today thrashed a psychiatrist for allegedly molesting a nurse in the isolation ward of the hospital on the night of July 11.

Angered over the incident, the nurses protested near the office of the Principal Medical Officer (PMO) for four hours and thrashed the suspect, Dr Manoj Kumar, in the office of the PMO. The nurses broke the glass of the office of PMO Sarita Yadav.

What had happened

A staff nurse had alleged that the doctor, in an inebriated condition, tried to molest her in the isolation ward of the Civil Hospital, Panchkula, on Saturday night. She complained to the Principal Medical Officer after which an inquiry committee was formed. The committee submitted its report to the CMO.

The hospital authorities failed to inform the police even though the situation went out of control. The police were called only after the violent protest had ended. After receiving information that the doctor had come to the office of the PMO to join investigation before the inquiry committee, staff nurses started arriving at the PMO office around 12.45 pm and started raising slogans, demanding that the doctor be sacked. They also thrashed the doctor, who was sitting in a room in front of the PMO office. They alleged that senior officers were trying to shield the doctor. The ruckus continued till 4 pm.

A police team, led by Lalit Kumar, in-charge of the Sector 5 police station, arrived at the spot, but by then, the situation was somewhat under control. When the police tried to take the doctor into custody at 3 pm, some staff members blocked the stairs, forcing the police to bring down the doctor through a lift from the fifth floor to the ground flood where staff nurses again tried to thrash the doctor. The mobile phone of one of the police officers, who was recording the incident, was thrown on the floor. A woman police official received bruises on her arms.

The Civil Surgeon, Dr Jasjit Kaur, said the victim nurse had submitted her complaint to the PMO after which an inquiry committee was constituted, which was probing the matter. She said evidence was being gathered by the department to take action against the doctor.

Kamal, president of the Panchkula Nursing Association, said they had served an ultimatum on the CMO to sack the doctor, but no action was taken. She refused to comment on the assault on the doctor by the nursing staff.

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