A 68-year-old dementia patient in Hubei, China, was hospitalized in a psychiatric hospital when his eyes were gouged out by a fellow patient in the same room, resulting in blurred vision in his left eye and blindness in his right eye.
On Thursday (5th), Mr. Wang from Huangshi, Hubei, reported to the Beijing News that his father encountered the misfortune at a psychiatric hospital in September 2024.
Mr. Wang stated that during a nap, his father had his hands tied, while a fellow patient had only one hand tied. This patient turned over and gouged his father's right eye out of the socket. Three surgeries were performed, leaving his vision nearly lost. An informed source said that a caregiver was present during the attack to stop it but left afterwards. Both individuals involved are not legally competent, and the psychiatric hospital should bear the main responsibility for the incident. A reporter learned from Huangshi Psychiatric Hospital that it was recommended for the family to seek legal recourse.
According to a report by Litchi News, after the incident, Huangshi Psychiatric Hospital sent Mr. Wang's father to a hospital in Wuhan for treatment and covered most of the medical expenses. After eye surgery, he returned to the psychiatric hospital for care for more than ten days. Mr. Wang stated from footage of the incident that his father's hands were tied, while the other patient had only one hand tied, allowing him to turn over to inflict harm, “If that person had both hands tied, he wouldn’t have been able to turn over and gouge my father’s eyes. This is entirely due to the hospital’s inadequate management.”
Currently, Mr. Wang is pursuing legal action regarding subsequent compensation. However, due to his father's dementia, related forensic assessments pose certain difficulties. Dr. Zhou from Huangshi Psychiatric Hospital stated that after the patient was injured, the hospital sent him to Wuhan for treatment, and the entire department received corresponding penalties, “Multiple thousands of yuan were deducted.”