The Rayong Khwaeng Court sentenced a man to three months in prison and fined him more than 70,000 baht on Wednesday for assaulting a nurse in an intensive care ward in February.
His sentence was subsequently reduced to 45-days imprisonment for having confessed.
On Feb 16 at Rayong Hospital, the man, identified only as Sanphong, 46, twice slapped an ICU nurse in the face after his daughter was denied entry to an ICU room where her ailing grandmother was being treated.
He admitted attacking the nurse, explaining in his defence that she used strong language in telling his wife the child would be at risk of infection if she went in to see her grandmother, who was stricken with influenza A.
He said the nurse informed them that bringing the child into the ICU could result in another potential fatality, which caused him to lose his temper.
The court said he attacked and caused physical and mental harm to an authority officer on duty, which violated Section 296 of the Criminal Code, and sentenced him to three months in prison.
It then halved his term because he cooperated and because it was his first offence.
The court also ordered him to pay the victim 77,273 baht with 5% interest.
A source said Mr Sanphong was granted 60,000 baht bail, and his lawyer is seeking to appeal the court's sentence in the next 30 days.
