A woman who complained she was sexually assaulted by a doctor in a West Australian hospital swiftly singled out a different doctor when she was shown photographs of staff, a court has heard. Priyantha Padmike Dayananda is on trial in the District Court of WA, charged with sexual penetration without consent. The woman alleges Dayananda paid her “special attention” when she was in Bunbury Hospital after abdomen surgery in October 2017, visiting her multiple times a day, suggesting they “meet up” and stroking her hair. When she returned in pain in December after a wound from the surgery became infected, she was placed in an emergency department cubicle, where she alleges the offence took place. She told the court Dayananda closed the curtains behind him, saying he saw on a computer she had been admitted, pulled up her dress and bra, and inserted his hand into her underwear, asking a question about her cleanliness “down there”. He allegedly said he still wanted to take her “out”. She said she had to go to the toilet, ran from the hospital “as fast as I possibly could” and took a taxi home. The woman said he phoned her days later, replying “I’m the doctor from Bunbury Hospital” when she asked who he was, but not providing his name. But she recognised his voice and Indian accent, she said, and saved his number in her mobile phone under “sleaziest slyest doctor”. The complainant says he called and texted her numerous times over the next five to six weeks, and she told him she couldn’t speak because she was praying and had gone interstate. When she complained to hospital officer Caitlin Crispin, she was shown photographs of the male doctors and asked to point out who molested her. Defence counsel Simon Watters asked if the complainant selected a Pakistani doctor “pretty well straight away”. “That’s right,” Ms Crispin replied. The complainant was encouraged to have another look and confirmed her choice. Prosecutor Joel Grinceri said she simply made an error and the state would provide evidence proving Dayananda was the offender. Mr Watters said the other doctor was on duty that day and had access to the emergency department. “We say that the wrong doctor has been charged,” he said. The trial continues.
