Physician who mocked and cursed at patient in viral video suspended from hospital

An emergency room physician who is seen on a video mocking and cursing at a patient who claimed to be having an anxiety attack was suspended from a California hospital.

In a video posted last week, 20-year-old Samuel Bardwell told Dr. Beth Keegstra that he was having trouble breathing while seeking treatment at El Camino Hospital in Los Gatos, Calif.

“He can’t inhale. Wow! He must be dead,” Keegstra told the patient while laughing. “Are you dead, sir?”

The footage has gone viral.

What happened?

His father Donald told SFGATE  that his son has had past anxiety attacks and takes Klonopin, a prescription drug that treats seizures, panic disorders and anxiety.

He told the publication, however, that Bardwell had not taken his medication leading up to his hospitalization.

Donald rushed his son to the emergency room and recorded what followed.

"This is how they treat black people in Los Gatos emergency room. SMH Everyone share this video. For the record this is my son," Donald Bardwell wrote on Facebook.

In the video, Dr. Keegstra, a contracted physician, accused Bardwell of coming in only for narcotics despite his symptoms.

Both men explained the 20-year-old was throwing up and had been in and out of consciousness.

“This is ridiculous,” Dr. Keegstra told Bardwell. “You are full of s--t.”

She also tried to forcibly pull the patient’s arm up to get him to sit up when he said he physically could not.

The video has over 5.1 million views on Facebook.

Hospital responds

El Camino Hospital CEO Dan Woods called the incident “unprofessional.”

"Our number one priority is and always will be to serve our community with exceptional care and the utmost dignity and respect for all," Woods said in a statement Thursday.

They added that Keegstra would not be returning to El Camino Hospital.

“Our contracted provider for emergency services … has been notified to permanently remove this physician from the list of approved physicians assigned to provide emergency care at our hospitals,” it read.

Wood says they have apologized to Bardwell and are working with him directly.

Follow Cydney Henderson on Twitter @CydHenderson

Cox Media Group