Motorists pass Victoria International Hospital in Phnom Penh’s Tuol Kork district. A member of staff is detained for questioning after the Ministry of Health on Monday shut down the hospital for allegedly confining a patient’s family for failing to pay a $2,000 medical bill. Hong Menea
A Chinese member of staff at the Victoria International Hospital in Phnom Penh’s Tuol Kork district was detained for questioning on Tuesday after the Ministry of Health shut down the hospital for allegedly confining a patient’s family for failing to pay a $2,000 medical bill.
Tuol Kork district police chief Sok Heng said the Chinese national, who was identified only as Azhi, 43, was a cashier at the hospital.
Heng said he was unsure when Azhi would be sent to court, while hospital director Sieng Sokun was temporarily released pending further notice.
“We cannot say when he would be sent to court. When we finish questioning him, we will send him to court, and if there is anything new, we can talk later,” he said, before hanging up.
Tuol Kork district governor Ek Khun Doeun declined to provide additional comment on Tuesday.
Phnom Penh municipal health department director Ngy Mean Heng said the ministry shut down the hospital for failing to follow the terms and conditions laid out in an agreement with them when the hospital registered.
He declined further comment, saying the case is now outside the ministry’s jurisdiction.
“The case is now in the police and court’s hands, so it’s beyond my capacity,” he said.
Minister of Health Mam Bunheng on Monday revoked the hospital’s licence given in 2015 and ordered an immediate shutdown.
The closure came after the hospital staff allegedly held a girl and her family for failing to settle the medical bill.
A family member who requested anonymity told reporters outside the hospital on Monday that the girl’s mother brought her to the hospital after hearing news of free medical check-up.
She said a doctor told the girl she had been diagnosed with a uterus problem which warranted an urgent operation.
The hospital declined the family’s request to negotiate medical fees before the operation, she said. It then produced a $2,000 bill after the procedure was carried out.
When the family was asked to pay a deposit of $600, the staff locked them in, prompting the girl’s mother to call her relative who then broke the news to reporters.
The online news outlet Swift News reported on Tuesday that a total of 23 people, including six Chinese nationals, were questioned in relation to the case, but only Azhi was detained pending legal action.
The report said five other Chinese staff members were sent to the municipal immigration department for not having valid passports.
