A predawn knife attack at a military hospital in northeastern China left six nurses and an administrator dead and one person injured Thursday. Li Xiaolong, 27, a hospital worker at the facility, is being charged in the killing, according to the police. The attack took place in Beidaihe, which is a seaside resort town, a favorite spot of the Communist Party elite.
Officials didn’t comment on the reason for the attack. Police did say, though, that Xiaolong wasn’t known to have any problems with the people killed. In a statement, police said Xiaolong has a history of mental illness.
Recently, medical workers in the country have been the victims of violence, which officials attribute to poor doctor-patient relationships, high medical costs, unsatisfactory treatment and lack of medical
resources, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Low salaries and demanding workloads led to a lack of doctors in China.
Assaults at Chinese hospitals have been on the rise, increasing to an average of 27.3 per hospital in 2012 from 20.6 in 2008, according to a Chinese Hospital Association survey. In response, the government tightened security at the hospitals and imposed stronger criminal sentences.
