Russian doctors died after falling from hospital windows, protested against working conditions

Medical workers all over Russia have been voicing their concerns over shortages of protective equipment and have questioned the infection-control procedures that turned dozens of hospitals into virus hotbeds.

In a rather bizarre pattern, doctors in Russia are dying after falling off from hospital windows. The recent case is of two Russian doctors who died and one remains in the intensive care unit in serious condition after falling out of windows in hospitals under mysterious circumstances. Media reports stated that all three doctors were under pressure as they had voiced their opinion over working conditions amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The reasons for the two separate incidents remain unknown and the police is investigating. According to the reports, out of the three doctors, two protested against the working conditions that they were working in and the third doctor was blamed for spreading the virus after her colleagues tested positive for coronavirus.

A man wearing a protective face mask runs by graffiti in Brick Lane, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, London, Britain, April 18, 2020.Reuters

Medical workers all over Russia have been voicing their concerns over shortages of protective equipment and have questioned the infection-control procedures that turned dozens of hospitals into virus hotbeds, with hundreds of doctors and nurses contracting the virus. Doctors alleged that they have been told that they will be dismissed or even prosecuted if they protested.

Shortages of protective gear

Dr Alexander Shulepov tumbled from a window on Saturday morning in a hospital where he was being treated for COVID-19. Due to the fall, he broke his ribs and fractured his skull.

His colleague, Alexander Kosyakin, posted a video on social media earlier in which both are complaining about shortages of protective gear. In the video, the 37-year-old Shulepov said he was being made to work despite his tests coming positive for coronavirus.

But another video was shared later in which he has retracted his earlier complaints, saying he was being emotional. Kosyakin has been accused of spreading false information and is under investigation.

How Shulepov fell down is still a mystery. Some local media reports said he slipped while trying to climb from his window for a smoke outside, while some state that it happened because he was under tremendous pressure for voicing his complaints.

On April 25, another Russian doctor died after she had a fall in the city of Krasnoyarsk in western Siberia. Dr Yelena Nepomnyashchaya, acting head of a hospital, fell from her fifth-floor office window immediately after she finished a conference call with regional health officials.

A day earlier than that, Dr Natalya Levedeva sustained fatal injuries after falling out of a window in a hospital in Moscow, where she was admitted with suspected COVID-19. Levedeva died immediately after the fall, which health officials said was an accident.