In Yaroslavl, concerns have risen after an incident at a local clinic where a deaf-mute nurse allegedly caused harm during a routine blood sampling procedure. The publication refers to the event using the nickname “Magpie.”
A resident who spoke about the ordeal on social networks reported witnessing the incident on November 27 at a clinic on Dzerzhinsky Boulevard. On that day, a health examination was conducted for children born in 2020, and one child in the group allowing the day’s blood tests became the subject of a troubling sequence of events.
According to the parent, a nurse in her thirties drew blood by using a bandage to retrieve a finger prick instrument, then inserted the needle into the child for what felt like multiple attempts. The child cried openly, a reaction that rarely occurred from the youngster. The parent observed the nurse returning the instrument to the bandage after the act and questioned whether a hair-like fragment had somehow been introduced into the child. The parent then followed the next patient and their guardian into the waiting area. In that moment, the parent noticed the nurse repeating the same finger-prick tool on another patient, prompting further alarm and concern.
The witness stated that efforts were made on the spot to understand what had happened, but the nurse’s deaf-mute condition complicated those efforts. When doctors were eventually brought into the room, they initially questioned the veracity of the report and the sequence of events.
During the subsequent discussion, a doctor reportedly wrote a question on a piece of paper asking why multiple children were being pricked with the same instrument. The nurse allegedly answered in writing that she had finished what she set out to do. The scene prompted panic among those present, the clinic manager arrived, and a department was summoned to assess the situation. The observer indicated that this moment was highly unsettling and difficult to process, stressing that it marked an unprecedented occurrence in their experience.
Following the incident, the head of the clinic suggested that the involved children undergo blood donation again after a two-week interval to ensure there were no lingering concerns. The Regional Ministry of Health has yet to issue a formal statement regarding the incident, leaving questions about oversight and accountability in the air. Earlier reports noted a separate episode in which a priest offered communion to children with pneumonia using a spoon, prompting additional public discussion about medical and religious practices in close proximity to patient care.