Senior obstetrician buried in Henan after sudden death

A 57-year-old obstetrician at the Sixth People's Hospital of Zhoukou in Central China's Henan province died after falling from a building on Friday evening, local health authorities announced on Tuesday.

The incident occurred at 8:38 pm on Friday and, despite immediate resuscitation attempts by members of hospital staff, Shao succumbed to her injuries at 1:40 am on Saturday, a spokesperson for the authorities said.

A joint investigation involving the local health committee and public security authorities is underway.

Shao, who served as director of the hospital's obstetrics and gynecology department, had worked in the field for over two decades and had published multiple academic papers, according to the hospital's official website.

She was buried on Monday morning, with her family, friends and colleagues in attendance, relatives told Jimu News, a Hubei-based media outlet.

One mourner who attended the funeral told Jimu News that Shao had been subjected to continuous online harassment before her death. In May, due to a disagreement over a treatment plan involving a postpartum patient, the patient's family posted multiple videos on social media criticizing and verbally attacking Shao and the hospital.

Shao's husband said she had sought help at the Taihao Road Police Station for the first time on July 30, yielding no results. On July 31, Shao went to the police station again, accompanied by her husband. The police eventually filed a case, but they didn't remove the online videos quickly enough, he told Jinyun News, a Tianjin-based media outlet. He also said police should not have taken the case lightly, citing past suicides linked to cyberbullying.

Tributes have poured in online from the obstetrician's former patients, remembering Shao as kind, gentle and dedicated. Many expressed shock and grief at her sudden death.