Relatives beat doctor after patient dies at Dhaka Medical

The entrance to the Emergency Department was closed for more than three hours, interrupting treatment for patients

Relatives of a patient who died at Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) have allegedly physically assaulted and abused doctors, accusing them of negligence in treatment.

Following the incident, emergency services were suspended for more than three hours from Wednesday night to early on Thursday morning after the main entrance of the Emergency Department was blocked. The law enforcement presence in the area was later increased to bring the situation under control.

The deceased patient was identified as Rashi Begum, 33, who lived with her family in Azimpur’s Lalbagh area.

Her stepson Imtiaz said she had been admitted to Ward 702 of the medicine department with liver complications. She died while undergoing treatment at around 10:30pm on Wednesday.

Imtiaz alleged: “An injection was supposed to be administered along with saline, but instead it was pushed undiluted into her body. She died within a short time.”

An altercation broke out around 1am between the patient’s relatives and the on-duty doctor, which later escalated into a physical clash.

Later, on-duty Ansar personnel and intern doctors chased the relatives away, after which police, RAB and the Army intervened to restore order.

Citing security concerns over the incident, doctors then closed the main entrance of the Emergency Department, suspending patient treatment. Emergency services eventually resumed at around 4:30am.

Intern doctor Shihab said the dead patient’s relatives assaulted a group of doctors identified Dr Touhid, Dr Rahat, Dr Bappi and Dr Nayeem. The injured doctors were later given treatment at the hospital’s Emergency Department.

Police detained two of the alleged attackers and handed them over to law enforcement. Members of the Army, police and RAB were subsequently deployed at the hospital, Shihab added.

Dhaka Medical College Hospital Police Outpost Inspector Md Faruk said, “After the patient’s death, a scuffle broke out between doctors and the patient’s relatives. Two people have been detained and handed over to Shahbagh Police Station. RAB and police have been deployed at the hospital to restore order.”