Doctor says knife placed to neck in hospital attack -told to sign incriminating prescription Stabroek News August 18, 1999 The Commission of Enquiry into incidents during the 55-day public service strike yesterday heard the testimony of three doctors from the Georgetown Hospital, one of whom said that a knife was placed to his neck on May 21, when an aggressive crowd invaded the Accident and Emergency (A&E) Unit. Dr Seodat Puran, testifying before Commissioner Justice Carl Singh, said that his colleague, Dr Vijai Sawh had escaped the crowd by seeking refuge in the roof. Also testifying was Dr Davendranauth Sawh who reported being present at the hospital immediately before the alleged attack. The names of the first two doctors had emerged on Monday during testimony given by Chairman of the Georgetown Hospital's Management Committee, Dr Leslie Ramsammy. Led by counsel to the commission, Mortimer Cumberbatch, Dr Puran said that before the attack, he and Dr Sawh had been attending to a woman who had been taken to the A&E unit by about five women at around 2030 hrs. Both the woman and the crowd claimed that she was suffering from abdominal pain after being assaulted by a man but Dr Puran said that neither he nor Dr Sawh could find anything wrong with her. The doctor said that he nevertheless told the woman that, despite finding nothing wrong, he would administer a pain reliever. Dr Puran recalled that he had been about to administer the injection when the woman refused the medication. At the same time, the persons who had taken her there and who were still standing by the A&E's open doorway began cursing him. According to Dr Puran, the people told him that the woman in question was allergic to injections and accused him of trying to kill her. The doctor said that he then walked into an adjoining room after which the patient walked out. Dr Puran said he was followed by a male, who produced a knife from his pocket, pressed it to his neck, and ordered him to write his name on a prescription which would say that the injection was to kill the patient. He said he told the man that any doctor could verify that the injection was not for that purpose. The group left and, according to Dr Puran, immediately after, a crowd of about 20 persons, whom he described as aggressive, entered the A&E unit. Five of these persons professed to be seeking medical attention and encircled him requesting same. Dr Puran explained that he had begun taking information from the persons when a glass bottle was thrown from the crowd still outside. After this, another group of persons arrived with a patient who was critically ill. Dr Puran said that neither himself nor Dr Sawh were able to attend to the patient since their lives were in danger from the aggressive crowd and they were forced to flee. Their flight took them to the Oral Rehydration Unit, which afforded a view onto New Market street. According to Dr Puran, he saw a crowd of about 100 people standing outside on the street. He described the crowd as aggressive and said he came to the conclusion that they would be in trouble. This was despite the presence of the hospital's internal security. Dr Puran said that Dr Sawh then gained access to the roof by standing on a cupboard and pushing up a panel. He then attempted to help his colleague up, but Dr Puran said that he held on to an overhead pipe which burst. Dr Puran said that he landed on the floor and a man entered the room. He said that the man addressed him using racial slurs and expletives, accused him of trying to break the strike and then dealt him several blows. The police subsequently arrived, Dr Puran said, and he went to check on the critical patient who had expired by then. Dr Sawh told the commission that while he and Dr Puran had been examining the patient, another doctor had telephoned him warning him that a crowd was outside and that they should leave. He recounted attempting to leave through the open doorway which was blocked by a large crowd of people but being stopped by a woman who grabbed him by the shirt. Dr Sawh recalled that while in the roof he had lost his way but that he eventually got down to the floor and was able to speak to a nearby policeman who informed him that Dr Puran was outside. Both he and Dr Puran said that during the entire incident they had not been afforded any protection by the hospital's security. Meanwhile, in the afternoon session, Dr Davendranauth Sawh testified that on the same night he was threatened by a crowd of persons outside the hospital. The doctor said that he was allowed to pass but only after the crowd verbally abused him and threatened to wreck his car. The doctor said that when he left the hospital, a crowd was still gathered at the entrances but the only persons he recognised were two nurses he had seen at the entrance to the dispensary in the hospital compound. Dr Davendranauth Sawh told the commission of treating persons, who, when questioned as to why they had delayed getting treatment for relatively old wounds, responded that they had been prevented from entering the compound by persons outside the hospital. He said that on occasion, he had had to write medical certificates for persons who professed to be victims of violence. The testimony of the doctors brought to a close the commission's enquiry into strike incidents that affected the Georgetown Hospital. The health institution was the first item on the commission's agenda after it resumed its sittings on Monday following a two-week adjournment. During that time, Justice Singh had been attending a judicial conference in the Bahamas. The Commission of Enquiry had been one of the conditions in the agreement to end the public service strike which had been called by the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) and the Federation of Unions of Government Employees to press home demands for a 40% wage increase for public servants. Originally, the commission's hearings had been scheduled to end on July 30, but this deadline was extended by former President Janet Jagan shortly before it would have expired. A © page from: Guyana: Land of Six Peoples