Doctor in Goiânia accused of withholding patient discharges for political reasons

A gynecologist and obstetrician at the Hospital e Maternidade Municipal Célia Câmara in Goiânia has been reported to the Federal Public Ministry (MPF) for allegedly instructing staff to withhold patient discharges during an election weekend.

According to the complaint, the physician sent messages to a professional WhatsApp group stating that staff on duty during the weekend should not discharge patients because “the majority are Petistas” (referring to the Workers' Party). The message was accompanied by a sticker of former President Jair Bolsonaro. The report also notes that the physician previously suggested that medical residents who voted for candidate number 22, associated with Flávio Bolsonaro, would receive top marks in their rotations.

The legal complaint, filed by attorney Alan Henrique Silva Marques, suggests these actions could constitute patient coercion and interference with the free exercise of voting rights if patients were kept hospitalized without medical necessity. The investigation aims to address the potential misuse of a public health leadership position for political purposes.