On July 19, a knife attack claimed the life of Li Sheng, a respected cardiologist at the First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Zhejiang Province. Li, 50, was fatally attacked while working through his lunch break to see remaining patients still waiting from his morning shift.
The attacker, an elderly man, forced his way into Li’s office and stabbed him before committing suicide by jumping from the third-floor window. Despite Li’s desperate attempt to escape and later receiving emergency blood transfusions, he succumbed to his injuries.
The elderly assailant also died despite rescue efforts. The reason behind the attack is still unknown and the investigation is ongoing.
The news soon went viral as yet another tragic event in China’s long-standing history of doctor-patient conflict.
Widely circulated footage of the incident showed that two young male patients tried to intervene, but one was held back by his female companion. After shaking off the other patient who attempted to rescue Li, the assailant continued his attack.
Online viewers expressed outrage over the hospital’s security measures and criticized the apparent indifference of the many other patients at the scene Li had been working through his lunch break to treat.
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