Woman doctor assaulted in Nizamabad hospital’s labour room; police term incident ‘minor’

DNC is a surgical procedure in which the cervix (the lower, narrow part of the uterus) is dilated so that the uterine lining (endometrium) can be scraped with a curette (a surgical instrument) to remove abnormal tissues.

“I had asked the ‘bystander’ (caretaker or attendant) to come by 9 am. On Wednesday morning, they were not present outside the labour room. Since there were several other patients and three pregnancy cases, I attended to them,” Dr Ramya told South First.

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The incident

Sunitha’s bystanders reached the labour room around 11.30 am. “They were not allowed inside the labour room. These women came inside the prohibited area since the security guard was not at the gate,” the doctor said.

After the incident, the doctors presented a memorandum to the hospital superintendent. (Supplied)

Dr Ramya said she was attending to a patient when the women barged into the labour room. “My gloves had blood on them, which is normal in the labour room. These women started questioning me. I asked them again to wait outside but they wouldn’t listen. They started shouting at me,” she narrated the incident.

When the doctor turned towards the patient she had been attending to, one of the women pulled her hair. “It took me a second to realise what was happening. The woman was pulling my hair and showering profanities on me. Other doctors present in the room intervened and rescued me,” Dr Ramya said.

After the incident, the security person arrived and asked the women to go out of the labour room. “Both of them were abusing me though I am a doctor. I was on duty for almost 24 hours in the labour room,” she added.

When the police arrived, the women alleged that it was Dr Ramya who had first launched the attack. “They also accused my colleagues, who rescued me, of assaulting them,” she said.

After the incident, the doctors boycotted the OPD.

“As doctors, our priority is to help patients. But even after the assault, we attended to duty at the emergency ward. The bystanders of patients were still saying that we should not boycott our duties since such incidents are normal,” Dr Ramya said.

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Minor incident, say police 

The doctor claimed that the police did not initiate any action against the two women. However, the police said a case has been registered.

“After receiving the hospital superintendent’s complaint, we registered a case against the two women. The incident was a minor one. The women who assaulted the doctor are not educated enough to understand everything. We are investigating the case,” Nizamabad 1 Town police SHO told South First.

The case was registered against Alakunta Yellamma and Deshai Chandrakala under Section 353 (Assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his/her duty) of the IPC and Section 4 of The Telangana Medicare Service Persons and Medicare Service Institutions (Prevention of violence and damage to property) Act, 2008.

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Recurring incidents

Dr Pranay Yogi, a resident doctor at the hospital and vice president of Telangana Junior Doctors’ Association stated that the attack on Dr Ramya was the third incident in recent months.

“A group of people abused a male doctor a couple of months ago since the physician was not proficient in Telugu and hence could not communicate properly. He was from Kerala,” Dr Yogi told South First.

He further said another gynaecologist was also assaulted in the labour room. “It is crucial to address these incidents promptly and effectively to ensure the safety and well-being of medical professionals,” he said.

Dr Ramya added that since many of the resident doctors come from outside the district, leaving their family and friends, and often work long hours, the hospital should take care of their safety. “We are on our own,” she added.