Video of Chinese doctor punching elderly patient in head during surgery sparks outrage

A disturbing viral video circulating online this week purports to show a Chinese surgeon repeatedly punching an 82-year-old patient in the head during a procedure.

The alleged incident occurred in 2019 at an ophthalmology hospital in the southwestern Chinese city of Guigang run by the company Aier China.

In the alarming CCTV footage, which was posted to Weibo this week by Dr. Ai Fen, director of Wuhan Central Hospital’s emergency department, a doctor hovers over a patient draped in a dark green surgical blanket.

As the 82-year-old patient begins to shift positions under the blanket, the doctor appears to deliver three quick strikes to her head. At one point in the video another hospital staffer comes into frame and helps restrain the flailing patient.

Aier China said in its statement that the doctor “treated the patient roughly in an emergency situation” after she allegedly failed to heed the doctor’s warnings not to move her head and eyeballs.

“During the operation, due to local anesthesia, the patient had surgical intolerance and reached up to try to touch [her] eyes. The area near the eyes is a sterile surgical area. Once touched, it may cause infection…the doctor wants to avoid danger,” the statement, translated by Google, reads in part.

The hospital alleged the patient was unable to understand the surgeon’s instructions in Mandarin as she only spoke a local dialect. BBC writes that local authorities said the woman sustained bruises to her forehead as a result of the incident.

Aier China said in a statement Thursday that the surgeon has been suspended and the CEO of the hospital group dismissed.

Speaking to local news outlets, the patient’s son said after the procedure hospital management apologized and paid them 500 yuan ($70) as compensation.

He also claimed his mother is now blind in her left eye, however, it was not immediately known if that was the result of what the video shows.

Aier China said the hospital had failed to report the incident, which the public was unaware of until Ai, who has more than 2 million followers on the platform, shared the video.

According to BBC, Ai has had a longstanding feud with Aier China stemming from an operation she underwent in 2021 at one of their hospitals which she claims left her nearly blind in one eye — allegations the company denies.