Russian whistle-blower doctor fears sack
A Russian cardiologist says he is facing dismissal after telling Vladimir Putin that an impressive display at his hospital was faked for the prime minister’s visit.
Putin visited a hospital in mid-November in the central town of Ivanovo where he saw new medical equipment and met doctors boasting about salaries of $1,000 a month.
Ivan Khrenov told Putin during a live call-in show that the equipment was borrowed and the doctors were instructed to show fake pay slips and pose as recovering patients. Putin has ordered an investigation.
Regional lawmaker Sergei Pakhomov said today that Khrenov is “insane” and will be questioned.
Khrenov told the Interfax news agency he fears being blacklisted or being beaten “in a dark alley.”
