The 45-year-old HIV-infected man was sent to MYH from a hospital in Ujjain to seek treatment for a broken bone, an official said. In the purported video of the incident, the junior doctor is seen continuously slapping the patient lying on the stretcher and also abusing him.
In response to an incident involving the mistreatment of an HIV-infected patient at Maharaja Yeshwantrao Hospital (MYH) in Indore, a junior doctor has been suspended.
The incident occurred when a 45-year-old HIV-infected man was transferred to MYH from a hospital in Ujjain for treatment of a broken bone.
The junior doctor is reported to become very unhappy when he discovered that the patient has HIV and the status has been hidden from them until his bone treatment has started.
In a purported video of the incident, the junior doctor is seen continuously slapping the patient on a stretcher and using abusive language. Dr. Pramendra Thakur, the Superintendent of MYH, confirmed the immediate suspension of the junior doctor, who is assigned to the Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology.
Maharaja Yeshwantrao Hospital is affiliated with the government’s Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College in the city. Dr. Sanjay Dixit, the Dean of the college, has formed a three-member committee to investigate the case and will submit a report in three days.
“We brought the patient to MYH to treat a broken bone. He is already infected with HIV. The junior doctor beat him up for not telling him about the HIV infection. I was also hit when I intervened to stop the assault,” the patient’s attendant claimed.
It is important to note that discriminating against a person based on his HIV infection status is a criminal offense in India.
The HIV and AIDS (Prevention & Control) Act, 2017 is a central legislation protecting and promoting the rights of persons infected with and affected by HIV and AIDS.
