A 47-year-old ward attendant of Lokmanya Hospital at Nigdi, Pune, allegedly beat up a critically ill ICU patient on Sunday evening while trying to wake him up
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Patient Swapnil Joshi Gaikwad
Pune: A 47-year-old ward attendant of Lokmanya Hospital at Nigdi, Pune, allegedly beat up a critically ill ICU patient last evening while trying to wake him up. Swapnil Joseph Gaikwad (26), a resident of Yamunanagar in Nigdi, was admitted to the hospital on May 19 after developing a blood clot in the brain from a stroke. His sister, Sangita, said the family had just returned after visiting the cafeteria for a break, when they saw ward attendant Gautam Sopan Ghadge beating Gaikwad on his head and legs.
His sister, Sangita, said the family, who had been waiting outside the second-floor ICU, went to the cafeteria on the third floor around 6.30 pm yesterday. "When we returned, we saw through the glass pane of the ICU that ward attendant Gautam Sopan Ghadge was hitting my brother on the head and the legs. I rushed in, but Ghadge brushed the incident aside and even chastened me for entering the ICU without permission. Later, I found out that my brother wanted to urinate and asked for the bedpan. Heavily medicated, he went back to sleep immediately. Ghadge apparently hit him to wake him up. That's an inhumane way to treat a patient."
The family approached the hospital authorities, who allegedly did not even entertain their complaint. This forced the family to approach the Nigdi police.
Vijay Palsule, inspector of Nigdi police station, said a non-cognisable complaint has been registered against Ghadge, a resident of Ramnagar in Bhopkhel. "He is now on the run."
Ayushi Shrikande, management in-charge of Lokmanya Hospital, said Ghadge has been working with the hospital for the last 15 years. "In all these years, we received no complaint against him. We will warn him and also assist the police with their investigation."
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