#FMCG Eight Talks##Consumption##Aier Ophthalmology#A revelation that a doctor beat a patient during surgery pushed Aier Ophthalmology to the hot search, and the whistleblower came from a patient who had complained about the non-standard diagnosis and treatment process of Aier Ophthalmology - Ai Fen. In the early morning of December 21, the official account of Guigang Aier Ophthalmology issued a statement on the online information of "Doctor Boxing Patient's Head on the Operating Table", saying that the hospital did not have the motive and behavior of harming patients, and after the explanation of doctors and patients and their families, the misunderstanding of patients after surgery has been eliminated, and the two sides have reached an understanding. Since falling into a medical dispute in 2021, Aier Ophthalmology's stock price has continued to decline. As of the close of trading on December 21, Aier Ophthalmology's share price was 15.77 yuan, a three-year low. From the high of 42.64 yuan in July 2021, it has fallen by 60%.
The response said that the two sides had reached an understanding
Regarding the content of the revelations, the official account of Guigang Aier Ophthalmology issued a statement on the online information of "Doctor Operating Table Boxing Patient's Head", saying that after investigation, the incident occurred on December 12, 2019. Patient Qin was diagnosed with cataract in his left eye, dislocation of the lens in his left eye, and preoperative visual acuity. The patient was diagnosed and underwent left eye lens extraction (abnormal lens) + anterior segment vitrectomy.
During the operation, due to local anesthesia, the patient has intolerance to the operation, reaches up and tries to touch the eye, the area near the eye is the sterile area of the operation, once touched it may cause infection, and the operation is in progress, the doctor in order to avoid danger, in an emergency, quickly hammer the patient with his hand to remind the patient, there is no motive and behavior to harm the patient.
According to the statement, there was a misunderstanding between the patient after the operation, and after the doctor explained to the patient and the family, the two parties have cleared up the misunderstanding and reached an understanding. Aier Ophthalmology further stated that it will always be patient-centered, insist on providing high-quality services to patients, and at the same time humbly accept the supervision of all walks of life and continuously improve its work.
The content of the revelation caused a storm of public opinion, but the source of the video is also controversial. Zhang Wenbo, senior partner of Beijing Jundu Law Firm and director of the life science and health care legal department, said in an interview with a reporter from Beijing Business Daily that the surgical video involves patient privacy issues, and it is illegal to leak it privately. The Law of the People's Republic of China on Physicians and the Regulations on Nurses stipulate that physicians and nurses shall protect the privacy of patients in their practice activities. The Regulations on the Management of Medical Records of Medical Institutions (2013 Edition) stipulates that medical institutions and their medical staff shall strictly protect the privacy of patients and prohibit the disclosure of patients' medical records for non-medical, teaching and research purposes. The Personal Information Protection Law stipulates that medical and health personal information is sensitive personal information, and once leaked or illegally used, it is easy to cause the personal dignity of natural persons to be violated or the personal and property safety to be endangered.
Professor Deng Yong, head of the legal and commercial team of Beijing Health, said that in general, the leakage of operating room videos is a possible violation because it involves the privacy of patients and the protection of medical information. If the video is leaked without the consent of the patient or family, then this may constitute an invasion of the patient's privacy rights and may also violate the relevant medical information protection regulations.
Repeatedly caught up in medical disputes
It is not the first time that Aier Ophthalmology has been pushed to the forefront of public opinion due to diagnosis and treatment issues. In January 2021, Ai Fen questioned that the doctor did not carefully examine the fundus of the eye during the visit to Aier Ophthalmology, which delayed the detection and treatment of retinal detachment, resulting in rhegmatogenous retinal detachment and near-blindness in the right eye. In June 2023, based on the final judgment of the reputation infringement case, Ai Fen pinned his apology to the doctor on Weibo.
In March 2021, Sang Lin, a former employee of Aier Ophthalmology, posted on Weibo that because the surgeon did not communicate in detail about the surgical plan, sequelae and contraindications of surgery as required, his naked eye vision on the first day after refractive surgery was 0.25. After more than three years of treatment, the uncorrected visual acuity of both eyes still dropped to 0.05 and the corrected visual acuity was only 0.2.
Zhang Wenbo believes that the doctor's use of hammer reminders this time is too controversial. As can be seen from the video, the doctor did hit the patient in the head several times with his fist. Whether this kind of boxing is a "friendly reminder" or a harm, I'm afraid it's hard to say. There is no such specification in the medical practice code on how to alert the patient. Similar operations by medical staff are prone to controversy, such as previous news reports that doctors wake up anesthetized patients by slapping them, but this method is approved by most doctors.
Regarding whether the act of "hammering" is compliant in medical behavior, Deng Yong said that according to Aier Ophthalmology's response statement, the doctor quickly reminded the patient with his hand in an emergency, in order to avoid danger, and there was no motive or behavior to harm the patient. However, compliance also needs to be assessed in accordance with the specific regulations on medical conduct and relevant regulations. If the act violates the regulations on medical conduct or relevant regulations, then it may constitute medical misconduct or illegal acts.
The relevant person in charge of Aier Ophthalmology told a reporter from Beijing Business Daily that the follow-up investigation of the outflow of the video will be clear. "No matter who says or says, it should be in accordance with the facts, legal and compliant, and it is not advisable to mislead the public based on subjective assumptions or unilateral opinions. ”
The stock price has fallen by 60%.
In 2003, Changsha Aier Eye Hospital was established, which became the predecessor of Aier Ophthalmology. Refractive business and cataract business with high gross profit margin are the main businesses of Aier Ophthalmology. According to the third quarter report of 2023, its revenue in the first three quarters has reached that of last year, with an operating income of 16.047 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 22.95%, and a net profit of 3.181 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 34.97%.
In July 2021, the total market value of Aier Ophthalmology once reached more than 390 billion yuan, becoming the "eye" of the capital market, and as of the close of December 21, the total market value of Aier Ophthalmology was 147.109 billion yuan.
Deng Yong said that the public opinion turmoil may have a negative impact on the reputation and business of Aier Ophthalmology, leading to a decline in patients' trust in the hospital, which in turn will affect the operation and development of the hospital. At the same time, if the incident is proven to be a medical malpractice or illegal act, it may have a more serious impact on the hospital's credentials and credibility.
Zhang Wenbo believes that as a well-known company that has been listed for a long time, Aier Ophthalmology has attracted much attention from the public, and once the relevant public opinion occurs, it will be quickly disseminated through major video websites, news media, announcements of listed companies and other channels. This time, the information that doctors beat patients was rapidly spread with the help of online platforms, causing the stock market to fluctuate violently.
In order to reflect the confidence in the company's long-term development, since June 2023, Aier Ophthalmology has implemented a share repurchase plan, and as of the end of the third quarter, the cumulative repurchase amount has exceeded 366 million yuan, and in October 2023, Aier Ophthalmology announced that on the basis of completing the first repurchase plan, it will further increase its efforts and plan to use its own funds of 200 million to 300 million yuan to repurchase the company's shares again, and the two repurchased shares will be used to implement the equity incentive plan or employee stock ownership plan. In addition, the company's controlling shareholder voluntarily promised on August 23 not to reduce its holdings of the company's shares in the next six months.
Beijing Business Daily reporter Yao Qian