A doctor was attacked by a COVID-19 patient with a saline stand after he asked the patient to wear an oxygen mask at a government-run hospital in Alibaug, Maharashtra. 

The patient, admitted to the hospital, was undergoing treatment for COVID-19. The doctor had advised the patient not to remove the oxygen mask which enraged the patient, who sneaked up on the doctor while he was sitting on a chair. The patient started hitting the doctor on his head with the stand. 

Dr Swapnadeep Thale was seriously injured and was admitted to the same hospital for treatment. The police are still looking into the reason for the attack, while the patient has been charged with assault.

There have been several instances when healthcare workers have been attacked by family members of patients who succumbed to COVID-19. Doctors have protested seeking stricter laws. In April 2021, around seven to eight employees of Apollo Hospital, Sarita Vihar, New Delhi, were attacked by relatives of a COVID-19 patient, who had died. In another such incident, in June, a junior doctor was attacked at a COVID care center in Hojai district, Assam, by a mob and relatives of a COVID-19 patient who had died due to the disease.

The Parliament passed the Epidemic Diseases Amendment Bill, 2020, in September last year, introducing a rule that punishes individuals who attack healthcare workers or doctors involved in the fight against COVID-19 or during any situation like the current pandemic. It stipulates up to five years imprisonment for those who attack doctors and healthcare personnel.

Source: The Logical Indian