Madhya Pradesh: Hey, you have HIV, why didn’t you tell me earlier? Doctor beats patient after reading file, suspended
A junior doctor of Maharaja Yashwantrao Hospital (MYH) was suspended for beating an HIV infected patient in Indore. This action has been taken against the doctor after the video of him slapping the victim surfaced. A 45-year-old SIV affected person, resident of Panchchiriya, Sanwer, had his leg fractured in a road accident. The injured was admitted to a hospital in Ujjain, but the patient was sent to MYH from Ujjain for treatment of a seriously broken bone.
Akash Kaushal, a junior doctor at MYH, Indore, was angry with the patient or his family members not informing him about HIV infection before the treatment started. In the video of the incident, the junior doctor is seen continuously slapping the patient lying on the dressing table and also abusing him.
In this matter, MYH Superintendent Dr. Pramendra Thakur said that the junior doctor posted in the Orthopedics and Traumatology Department has been suspended with immediate effect. The family member accompanying the patient claimed, “We had brought the patient to MYH for treatment of fracture. He is already infected with HIV. The junior doctor beat him up for not telling about HIV infection. When I intervened, I was also beaten. The victim’s family has lodged a complaint about this incident in the CM Helpline. Thakur said that MYH is affiliated with the city’s government Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College. Dean Dr. Sanjay Dixit has constituted a three-member committee to investigate the matter and submit the report in three days.
Fine and punishment for discrimination against AIDS patients
People call doctors the Gods of the earth and this behavior shown by the doctors is not acceptable to anyone. Under the HIV Act 2017, for misbehaving and discriminating against a patient suffering from this disease, a jail term of 3 months to 2 years or a fine of up to Rs 1 lakh can be imposed. Meaning, discrimination against such patients will be considered a crime. Also, an HIV positive person will be forced to reveal his status when a court order is taken for this.
