A hospital receptionist says she raced to a surgeon’s side in the moments after he was allegedly punched to find him unconscious and choking, a jury has heard. Patrick Pritzwald-Stegmann, 41, suffered head injuries last May when he fell at Box Hill Hospital after allegedly being struck to the head by 24-year-old Joseph Esmaili. The surgeon’s life support was turned off weeks later. Esmaili is on trial in the Supreme Court, having pleaded not guilty to manslaughter. Megan Brodersen called security over a radio from her reception desk to come quickly to break up an argument between the two men whens he heard a bang, she told the court on Thursday. She looked up and, through reflection in a window, saw Mr Pritzwald-Stegmann, a surgeon at the hospital, on the ground. Ms Brodersen recalled rushing to his side, seeing him unconscious, choking and not breathing. She called for help and moved him into the recovery position. “He was very stiff, kind of convulsing. I put him in the recovery position and that’s when the blood came out of his nose and mouth” she said. “It felt like forever but [help] came very quickly.” In the lead up, Ms Brodersen said she heard Mr Pritzwald-Stegmann tell Mr Esmaili “you can’t talk to me like that” and repeatedly asking, “did you just spit on me?” Administration worker Lucy Jackson said she saw the punch reflected through a window, but under cross-examination by Mr Esmaili’s barrister John Desmond, admitted she didn’t see Mr Esmaili’s fist connect. It’s alleged the argument began after Mr Pritzwald-Stegmann asked a group outside the hospital to stop smoking in a non-smoking area. Leigh Clayton, one of the smokers, told the court earlier on Thursday the doctor seemed angry and frustrated they failed to move on a s he had asked and he “stormed back inside” to get security. “He was pissed,” she said. The trial continues.
