The patient was tied to the bed with rags: statement by a Mykolaiv councilwoman and the hospital's response

Councilwoman of the Mykolaiv City Council Tetiana Dombrovska reported what she says was likely improper treatment of her relative at City Hospital No. 1. According to her, the man was treated for three days for alcohol intoxication, they performed gastric lavage on him and attributed the worsening of his condition to alcoholic delirium. After being transferred to a private clinic in Odesa, the patient was diagnosed with pneumonia and septic shock. The councilwoman wrote about the situation on the evening of July 13, 2026 on her Facebook page. She told the MykVisti publication more about the circumstances of the hospitalization and treatment here.

According to Tetiana Dombrovska, her relative was admitted to City Hospital No. 1 on Wednesday, July 8. After initial examinations, doctors ruled out a heart attack and stroke and suggested that the man’s severe condition might have been caused by alcohol consumption.

“They said they would give him IV fluids and everything would be fine. When I asked what the diagnosis was, they replied that, most likely, he had drunk a lot of alcohol. I asked the family if he had been drinking. What alcohol — early morning,” the councilwoman said.

She claims that doctors began to perform gastric lavage on the patient, and the family was given a list of medications and supplies that needed to be purchased for intensive care. After several days, the man’s condition began to deteriorate and he started having hallucinations.

“On Friday my sister called me and said he was worse, he had started to have hallucinations. I called the doctor, and he said: ‘It’s just delirium tremens.’ On Saturday my sister screamed that father had stopped breathing, and he had already been connected to a mechanical ventilator,” said Tetiana Dombrovska.

The councilwoman asserts that during the three days the man was in the ICU he was allegedly not given repeat tests. When the patient was agitated, they began to restrain him to the bed.

“They simply tied him to the bed not as it should be done, but with some rags. Because of this he developed bruises on his arms,” she said.

She supplemented her Facebook post with a photograph showing the patient’s arm tied to the bed. According to her, while in the ICU the man also barely ate or drank, yet a feeding tube was not placed.

“The person was effectively four days without water and food. What they offered he ate three spoons of, he practically did not drink water. Later I learned that in such cases a feeding tube should be placed, as they did in the Odesa clinic,” said Tetiana Dombrovska.

After a sharp deterioration, the family called in Dr. Svitlana Fedorova, who previously headed the Mykolaiv Regional Infectious Diseases Hospital and now works privately. After examining the patient she suggested that the man had pneumonia and septic shock.

“Svitlana Fedorova listened to him and said that, most likely, it was pneumonia and septic shock. In other words, we could have lost him,” the councilwoman noted.

The family then began looking for a way to transfer the man to a private clinic in Odesa. According to Dombrovska, one of the medical facilities initially refused to admit him after reviewing documents that indicated alcohol intoxication and bruises on his arms.

The councilwoman also said that before the transfer, staff at the Mykolaiv hospital informed the family about the absence of a necessary antibiotic in the ICU and suggested that they purchase it themselves.

“When I tried to take a close person away from the inadequate Mykolaiv doctors and transfer him to a private clinic in Odesa, many people told me: ‘Call Senkyevych. He will help get the person out of there.’ I never called. I resolved the issue another way. Thank God, now everything is fine,” she wrote.

After being transferred to a private clinic in Odesa, the man was re-examined. According to the councilwoman, doctors confirmed pneumonia and septic shock.

“It turned out that he was in an extremely serious condition — pneumonia and septic shock. This is a terrible story. But I had the opportunity to transfer my close person. Not every child can do that,” said Tetiana Dombrovska.

The administration of City Hospital No. 1 responded to the councilwoman’s post. The medical facility reported that the patient was in the ICU for three days and received the necessary amount of medical care in accordance with his condition and current protocols. Later he was transferred to another facility at the family’s decision.

“Claims that the patient was ‘not given a chance to live’ do not correspond to the actual circumstances of the provision of medical care,” the hospital said.

The administration also urged people to refrain from unfounded accusations that could harm the reputation of the medical facility and its staff.

“We sincerely sympathize with every family that faces the serious illness of a loved one. At the same time, we urge refraining from unfounded generalizations and public accusations that may harm the reputation of a medical facility and the people who daily conscientiously perform their professional mission,” the hospital said.

At the same time, in the facility’s public response they did not explain on the basis of what examinations the patient was suspected of alcohol intoxication, whether repeat tests were performed, and why the hallucinations were linked to alcoholic delirium. The hospital also did not comment on claims about the method of restraining the man to the bed, the appearance of bruises, the patient’s nutrition, and the absence of the necessary antibiotic.

Tetiana Dombrovska said she plans to appeal to law enforcement agencies over what she believes was inadequate quality of medical services and possible violations of treatment protocols at City Hospital No. 1.

Previously we wrote:

• Lost consciousness after surgery: a patient died in a private clinic in Mykolaiv
• Death after a routine operation: a 16-year-old girl in the Mykolaiv region did not survive treatment
• “Deadly visit”: in Mykolaiv a regional hospital doctor will face trial for not noticing a patient’s critical condition
• Went to treat his nose — lost an eye: a doctor was charged after the surgery
• Did not recognize a heart attack and did not call a cardiologist: a psychiatrist was notified of suspicion after the death of a 57-year-old patient — media
• In Odesa an anesthesiologist will be tried for the death of a patient during surgery
• A serviceman died in a hospital after being wounded at the front: the police are investigating the actions of the medical staff