A serious incident of violence against healthcare workers at Lemnos Hospital has been reported by Michalis Giannakos, president of POEDIN, the Panhellenic Federation of Public Hospital Employees.

According to Giannakos, an 87-year-old patient allegedly attacked two doctors and a nurse, leaving one doctor injured badly enough to require hospitalisation in the Internal Medicine Department.

The incident reportedly began last Thursday morning, when the elderly man visited the hospital complaining of constipation. Doctors examined him and recommended that he be admitted to the Short-Term Care Unit for treatment, but he refused and left.

Giannakos said the man returned to the outpatient clinic waiting area on Friday morning, where he allegedly began shouting and swearing. A rural doctor came out of the examination room and, according to the complaint, asked him not to cause a disturbance.

As the doctor tried to return to the examination room, the 87-year-old allegedly grabbed her by the hair and neck, threw her to the ground and began punching and kicking her.

A second doctor and a nurse who tried to intervene were also allegedly attacked. According to the complaint, the second doctor was kicked, while the nurse was pushed and struck.

The doctor who sustained the most serious injuries was reportedly hurt across her body and admitted to the Internal Medicine Clinic at Lemnos Hospital.

Following the incident, the POEDIN president again raised concerns over the safety of healthcare workers, stressing that Lemnos Hospital does not have adequate security and calling for immediate measures to protect staff from violence.