Sexual harassment at Life Carstenhof in Glen Austin AH leaves victim distraught
Teary sexually harassed victim, asked, "How many other patients have been victims at the hands of this doctor but were scared to talk about it?"
The 2022 Christmas Day was a not as cheerful as others at Ruby Kanavathy’s house in Noordwyk after an ordeal she experienced at the Life Carstenhof Hospital in Glen Austin AH.
Speaking to Midrand Reporter, Kanavathy who is a former volunteer as a victim empowerment counsellor, said she was sexually harassed by a specialist doctor whom she hoped would help her ease her severe back pain.
She was admitted to the hospital on December 12. On the 13th, when a specialist came to see her, the unthinkable allegedly happened.
Narrating her nightmare, she said the specialist doctor came to the ward, looked at her, and informed her that he would come back later. “At this point, all ward nurses were around him. When he came back, around 19:00 there were no nurses, and he did not have my file. He came to the right-hand side of the bed, and leaned on the rails but he was so close to a point that I had to move back,” said Kanavathy.
“He was looking at me from head to toe as [if] undressing me with his eyes. He asked me where I was feeling pain and I said specifically around the rib cage area.”
Kanavathy said the doctor then moved away from the bedside and asked to examine her.
“I slowly got out of bed, hoping the nurse would come in but no one came in. I lifted my pyjama top and showed him where I was feeling pain. At the time, the doctor was behind me, and he pulled my pyjama pants midway down my butt and pressed to find out if I was having pain, and I said no.
“However, he pulled my pants all the way down, touched and pressed both my butt cheeks to further find out if there was any pain. I feel violated and traumatised by the entire incident. How many other patients have been victims at the hands of this doctor but were scared to talk about it?”
She said the doctor got scared when he overheard people who came to visit another patient in the same ward.
Hospital manager Thabo Mosheledi said the management team of Life Carstenhof Hospital was aware of and deeply concerned about the sexual harassment complaint lodged against one of their specialists.
“Safety and well-being of our patients is a priority and as such we take allegations of this nature very seriously. We can confirm that an internal investigation is underway in line with Life Healthcare’s internal policies and that the appropriate steps will be taken. A case has been reported at SAPS,” said Mosheledi.
The case was opened at the Midrand Police Station by Kavanathy but was transferred to the Rabie Ridge Police.
Rabie Ridge police spokesperson Sergeant Jacob Nhlongo confirmed that they were probing a sexual assault case. “No one has been arrested as yet, but a warning statement was obtained from the alleged suspect,” said Nhlongo.
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