KZN woman allegedly assaulted by male nurse at Isipingo Hospital

A 22-year-old Isipingo woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by a male nurse at Isipingo JMH Hospital last week, reports Rising Sun Chatsworth.

Confirming the incident, communications officer of eThekwini Outer South cluster Cpt Carmen Rhynes said: “A case of sexual assault was registered at Isipingo SAPS. The accused appeared for the first time in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Friday. The case is under investigation.”

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The incident unfolded when the 22-year-old went to the hospital for a medical check-up on Tuesday, as she had applied for a job overseas and this was one of the requirements.

The victim’s mother said: “My daughter went to the hospital at about 7.30am. After running some tests, he told her that her pressure was very high and she needed to take off her bra and loosen her pants as this will drop her pressure levels. She said that he was apparently on the phone with a doctor, who was telling him to relay the message to her that she needs to loosen her clothing and relax her hands.”

He allegedly asked for her phone, switched it off and then locked the doors.

The mother added, “I tried contacting my daughter, but her phone was switched off. So at 6pm when I closed my shop, I went to the hospital and spoke to the receptionist who directed me to the nurse’s office. My daughter came out looking disturbed, however, at that time I didn’t realise what had happened. He told me that her pressure was very high and she needs to come back tomorrow to run more tests.

“While we were leaving the hospital, he walked out with us because he didn’t want my daughter to say anything to me. He had already told her that she should not tell anyone because no one will believe her.”

It was when the mother and daughter got home, that the victim opened up to her and revealed what had occurred in that room.

“My daughter told me that while she laid on the bed, he had put the lights off and could hear him unbuttoning his pants. She said he had rubbed his penis on her hand. He also started fondling her breasts. He then asked her to move her head towards the end of the bed and began rubbing his penis all over her face,” the distraught mother said.

“She said that she couldn’t do anything because the door was locked and she couldn’t contact anyone because her phone was off, so she just laid there and prayed that it didn’t get worse. Her fear of screaming for help was that he might inject her or do something worse to her. He told her that he helped her to get what she needed, so it was her job to help him. The doctor told her that she needed to come the next day so he could do examinations on her private area. When I had checked the chart, my daughter’s pressure was normal.”

The victim’s brother said that the perpetrator’s family had come to his house and claimed that their son would never commit such an act, but the next day, he apparently told his manager that he had an emergency and fled.

“All I want is justice for my sister, it breaks my heart to see the person she has become after the incident. She was a bubbly person, now she just sits in her room, looks tense and scared. I don’t think that we should be dealing with these situations especially since it is a private hospital,” the irate brother said.

The PRO of Isipingo Hospital refused to comment on the matter, but said they are currently dealing with the situation.

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