Live Broadcast of Gynecological Surgery...50,000 Viewers Drawn by Uncensored Exposure of Private Area

50,000 viewers in just 4 minutes
Comment section flooded with sexual harassment

During a live broadcast of a gynecological surgery at a university hospital in China, part of the patient's body was exposed without any covering, causing a major public outcry. Contrary to the hospital's explanation that it was an educational broadcast for academic purposes, the stream was sent out via a public platform, and it is reported that tens of thousands of viewers saw the scene.

During a live broadcast of an obstetrics and gynecology surgery at a university hospital in China, parts of the patient's body were exposed without coverage (photo provided to aid understanding of the article; unrelated to the article's content). Pixabay

According to local media reports on February 6, the incident occurred during a recent live broadcast of a surgery conducted at the university hospital's obstetrics and gynecology department. The hospital stated that it had intended to film the procedure and share it with fellow medical staff for internal training and academic exchange. However, the video was streamed on social media that was accessible to the general public, not just a limited audience, and the situation quickly spiraled out of control.

In the problematic broadcast, the sensitive area of the female patient lying on the operating table was shown without any blurring or covering. The live stream continued for about four minutes, during which the number of viewers exceeded 50,000 and real-time comments poured in. It is reported that many of the comments included insulting language and sexually harassing remarks directed at the patient.

As the controversy grew, the hospital launched an internal investigation on February 3. In an official statement, the hospital explained that "a video intended for internal training was mistakenly uploaded to a public platform." It further added that "the video did not contain any information that could identify the patient," but public anger has not easily subsided.

Local internet users strongly criticized the hospital, asking, "Are you saying there is no problem as long as the patient's face is not shown?" and "Disclose whether any consent procedure was carried out."

Hospital says it was a "work process mistake," but damage control falls short

The hospital stated that immediately after the incident it shut down the account in question and would draw up measures to prevent a recurrence. It also reported that it is in the process of disciplining those responsible and inspecting its internal systems.

However, debate continues over medical ethics and the protection of personal data, with critics pointing out that the hospital, which should be protecting the patient's privacy, has instead become the center of controversy. Experts argue that "highly sensitive medical footage must be subject to strict prior consent and robust security measures, and real-time broadcasting on public platforms is fundamentally inappropriate."