Trainee doc assaults nurse

Nurses and other medical staff members demonstrate in the chamber

 of the hospital superintendent (extreme right) on Friday.

TT, Siliguri, Nov. 27: An intern at the North Bengal Medical College and Hospital allegedly assaulted a woman nurse this morning leading to the confinement of the hospital superintendent by her colleagues for more than four hours.

The protest ended around 3.30pm after superintendent Nirmal Bera lodged an FIR against the MBBS student at the NBMCH police outpost. An internal committee at NBMCH has been formed to probe the incident.

Joyita Banerjee, the nurse in charge of the labour room, said around 10.30am, the intern walked in with another intern and asked for some medical items.

"The labour room is one of the busiest places in the hospital with almost 30 deliveries taking place daily. This morning, four nurses were working when two interns asked for medical items like gauge and syringes. A nurse told them to take the items from a shelf in the room. One intern got angry and started abusing her. An altercation followed and he picked up the lid of a steel tray and hurled it at her chest. He took her right arm and twisted it. Other nurses had to intervene to make him let go of her hand. He then threw a cheatle forcep, which is used during childbirth, on the ground and broke it," Banerjee said.

The nurse was admitted to the female casualty ward.

Around 50 nurses and paramedical staff confined Bera and wanted an FIR be filed.

"I have spoken to both parties and they have different things to say. An FIR has been lodged against the intern and a four-member committee with the nursing superintendent, dean of students' affairs and heads of the department of biochemistry and gyneacology has been formed to probe into the matter. They will submit a report by Tuesday. We will take disciplinary action based on it," Bera said.

Reporters were prevented from speaking to both the intern and the nurse.

Another intern said the accused had denied the charges. "He said there was an altercation and he threw the tray lid on the ground but not at the nurse. He also denied twisting her arm," he said.

Although nurses claimed that they had not stopped work, relatives of some patients said there was no staff in some wards.

Parul Das, the acting nursing superintendent at NBMCH, said: "The intern used bad words against the nurse and beat her up. It is a big offence and we will not let him get away with it. He should be given severe punishment."