Dengue patient attacks three nurses in Kolkata

Police complaint lodged; accused on the run

In a bizarre incident, hours after a dengue patient was admitted to a south Kolkata nursing home, he allegedly attacked three nurses, who sustained serious head injuries, including fractures to the skull. Two of them, Margarat Mondal and Victoria, have been placed on ventilator support. The 27-year-old patient, Subir Saha, fled the nursing home after the incident.

According to the authorities at the All Asia Medical Institute (AAMI), the incident occurred on Thursday morning. Managing Director of the nursing home, Harsh Agarwal, said that when the patient, who came from the Burdwan district, was admitted on Wednesday night, his platelet count was low and he was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

No inkling

“There was no past history of violence [in the patient]. His mother and other relatives were also present. Until he is arrested, we cannot say why he did that [the attack],” he said.

“Two of our nurses were severely injured. One has a major wound at the back of her head while the other has been hit in her chest,” Dr. Agarwal said.

The third nurse, Shipra Mondal, who also suffered a head injury, said that there was no provocation on part of the nurses, and the patient started hitting them on their head with the stand used to hang saline bottles.

“How do we know that the patient will suddenly turn violent. We were not informed of any such thing about him,” Ms. Mondal said, demanding that the patient be arrested.