Eman’s sister coached her to be hostile towards us: Mumbai hospital staff
Nurses at Saifee Hospital say Eman would greet them with a smile before a fallout between her sister and the doctors
Thirty-six year old Egyptian, Eman Ahmed, who will soon take a flight to Abu Dhabi for further weight-loss treatment, has left her caregivers and nurses in the city with mixed emotions.
Ahmed, who supposedly weighed 500kg before her bariatric surgery, was all smiles when she arrived in Mumbai on February 11. Nearly three months later, she no longer greets her nurses with a smile.
“She used to give us flying kisses and wish us good morning, but not anymore,” said Tasneem Fidvi, head of administration
Eman’s caregivers said that her sister, Shaimaa Selim, ‘coached’ Eman to be hostile towards the hospital staff.
Dr Sameer Al Ghamdi, a fellow in Dr Muffazal Lakhdawala’s team who understands Arabic, said Selim ‘believed’ that her sister would have started walking after her surgery in Mumbai. “She is upset that once Eman returns to Egypt, nobody will help her. Selim has asked Eman not talk or smile at the hospital staff,” he said.
“For the past one week, Eman has been unresponsive. She does not wish anyone and does not follow instructions during physiotherapy sessions,” said Shirley Koshy, nurse in-charge, whose only job for the past three months was to take care of Eman at Saifee Hospital. She says she hasn’t visited her ailing mother in Kerala who is undergoing chemotherapy, just to take care of Eman.
“Earlier, we used to play Arabic music for her and she used to smile and shake her body like she was dancing,” she added Koshy.
Eman’s caregivers talked about how two weeks ahead of her arrival, preparations were in full swing. “We had two full-time nurses, a resident doctor and a security guard just dedicated to her. When she arrived, she wanted to have chicken sandwiches and custard, which we had prepared for her,” said Carlyne Remedios, head of nutrition.
The team added that they also took special care of Selim, who has accused doctors at Saifee Hospital of lying to the world about Eman’s weight loss. “When Shaima arrived, she wanted to go out to restaurants. We ordered food for her. We also took her out shopping whenever she wanted to, and now she says we didn’t take care of them. Isn’t she being ungrateful?” said. When HT reached out to Selim, she said she didn’t want to talk to the media.
Meanwhile, BJP spokesperson Shaina NC, on Saturday came out in full support of doctors at Saifee Hospital. She said, a progress report of Eman’s journey will be submitted to the chief minister. “What doctors here did was a gesture of goodwill and her sister (Shaimaa) is assassinating the characters of the doctors and spoiling their reputation,” she said.
Read