UGM Medical Student Faces Sanctions for Mocking BPJS Patient

A medical resident at Dr. Sardjito General Hospital in Yogyakarta has come under fire after her social media comments were perceived as mocking a patient who complained about an eight-hour wait for treatment under the national health insurance scheme (BPJS). The controversy began when the account @yurizaltrich posted on Threads on 22 July about the long wait for a hospital room. The thread was met with comments from several healthcare workers that were deemed lacking in empathy. The case gained widespread attention after the account owner, Yurizal Tri Chaeruman, was reported to have passed away on 31 July. Derogatory comments on the thread subsequently resurfaced. One comment that drew particular scrutiny came from the account @erudarahaadini, belonging to Elda Putri Rahardini, who was later identified as a specialist medical programme (PPDS) student at Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) and a resident doctor at Dr. Sardjito General Hospital. The comment read: “PP nya kayak orang Have tapi aslinya Haven’t kah? haven’t some brain cells.” The Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing at UGM (FK-KMK UGM) confirmed that Elda Putri Rahardini is a student currently pursuing specialist medical education at the university. “The Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing at Universitas Gadjah Mada (FK-KMK UGM) is observing the public attention regarding a social media post involving one of its Specialist Medical Education Programme (PPDS) students, Dr. Elda Putri Rahardini, Ph.D., and the various discussions that have developed concerning alleged statements perceived by some parties as not reflecting empathy towards patients,” said Yodi in a written statement received by detikJogja on Wednesday (5 August 2026). UGM stated it is conducting an investigation to understand the incident fully, including whether any violations were committed by the student. The university is coordinating with various relevant parties to ensure the examination process is conducted objectively, transparently, and upholds the principle of justice for all parties. Yodi stressed that the faculty will impose sanctions if the investigation proves a breach of the code of ethics, professional discipline, or academic regulations. Meanwhile, Dr. Sardjito General Hospital stated that Dr. Elda is not an employee of the hospital but purely a resident doctor. The hospital’s Legal and Public Relations Manager, Banu Hermawan, stated that the hospital is also monitoring the case and accompanying UGM in the investigation. “So that this is more proportional. We are not looking at it in pieces, but we will see what the actual upload from the person concerned on social media was. With an upload like this, we were quite shocked,” said Banu. “We have what is called a Dignified Education Team. This team consists of members from Sardjito and from the Faculty of Medicine; this team will move together. It is not partial, with Sardjito moving alone and UGM moving alone, that is not the case. This Dignified Education Team will summon and ask for clarification from the person concerned,” he added. Banu also stressed that the death of Yurizal Tri Chaeruman did not occur at Dr. Sardjito Hospital due to waiting for an inpatient room. “It did not happen at Sardjito and [Yurizal Tri Chaeruman] was not a patient at Sardjito,” Banu concluded.