A major Australian children's hospital has been forced to introduce new security measures after a man visiting his ill son raped a teenage patient in the next bed.
Raouf Philopos sexually assaulted the girl for more than an hour as his six-year-old son slept and while nurses tended to patients in the ward at The Children's Hospital at Westmead.
The 16-year-old victim was readmitted to the same hospital ward after turning to self-harm following the assault. The incident has forced a major review of Westmead's child protection policies, and resulted in new protocols for overnight stays by carers.
Philopos was sentenced to a maximum 12 years' jail for the offence, which occurred in 2003. But it only came to light last week when his appeal was rejected in the Supreme Court. Following the attack, the hospital launched a review into overnight stays and introduced a formal register of visitors.
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