Driven by suspicion, patient stabs doctor

An Anhui province man has been accused of stabbing a doctor at a Songjiang district hospital that he believed had cheated him, district prosecutors said Tuesday.

The suspect, surnamed Huang, visited a military-run hospital in the district in 2012 to see a urologist, according to a press release from the Songjiang District People's Prosecutor's Office. The doctor found a cyst and advised Huang that he would need to have surgery to remove it or face potential health problems in the future.

Huang agreed, though reluctantly. The surgery cost him more than 20,000 yuan ($3,283), including the four-day hospital stay afterward. Several months later, Huang had recovered from the surgery, but still doubted whether it had been necessary, prosecutors said. He suspected that the urologist only suggested the surgery to help the hospital make money.

In April, Huang returned to the hospital seeking treatment for stomach pain. Another doctor prescribed him medication, but it failed to relieve his discomfort after more than 10 days. When Huang went back to complain, the doctor said that it might take more time for the medication to take effect.

Huang believed that the doctor was lying to him and only wanted his money, prosecutors said. He complained to the local health authority and to police, but nothing came of it.

In May, Huang returned to the hospital with a knife and stabbed the urologist, prosecutors said. He then went looking for the other doctor who treated him, but was stopped by hospital security guards. The urologist suffered minor injuries.

Huang confessed to stabbing the doctor and admitted that he had been unhappy with the hospital's care.