Woman's death in childbirth heightens doctor-patient tensions(2)

Some Internet users expressed sympathy with the doctors, while others said that the hospital's handling of the incident provoked the family into their impassioned break-in.

"Irrespective of whether doctors mishandled the surgery, the hospital should at least notify the family in a timely manner what had happened," said netizen Yin Shanshan.

"Whatever the situation, doctors should not have abandoned a pregnant woman on the surgery table. It is a fundamental ethical issue," said another with the screen name "Bah, This is love."

"Blinking Eyes," however, raised doubt over the family members' intentions. "No doctor would like to cause a medical accident. There are too many patients and family members who try to seek compensation by starting a brawl."

The opinion was backed by "Good morning, New Zealand," who posted, "Funny! Why don't the family members just come out with how much money they want?"

The Chinese medical sector has reported increasing violence stemming from strained doctor-patient relations. Many patients are dissatisfied with difficulties accessing treatment, high medical fees, and in some cases, doctors' perceived unfriendly attitudes. Meanwhile, doctors complain of long working hours and low pay.

In an extreme case, a 17-year-old patient knifed four medical workers after "misunderstandings" toward the treatment prescribed by the hospital in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, leaving one dead and three others injured in March 2012.

In February this year, a doctor in the same province was beaten to death by a patient.

Zhou Shenghua, professor of the Xiangya Second Hospital under Central South University, said doctors fearing to communicate with patients' families had clearly aggravated the tension between the two parties.

Zhou advised hospitals to establish reception centers staffed by professional personnel to accept complaints and mediate between patients and their families to avoid such tension.