BEIJING - A doctor in eastern China as been stabbed to death after his assailant's baby died shortly after birth.

Dr Li Baohua, 34, of Laigang Hospital in Laiwu, in Shandong province, was stabbed 15 times - 12 times in the head - in his office on Monday (Oct 3) morning by the angry father of the baby girl, reported the South China Morning Post, citing The Beijing News. The attacker has been identified as Chen Jianli.

Chen reportedly carried out the attack after bringing a knife and dagger into the hospital, keeping the weapons hidden in a shoulder bag. He then went to Dr Li's office on the fifth floor to carry out the attack. Chen also prevented Dr Li's colleagues from coming to his aid.

Surgeons battled for five hours to try to save Dr Li, but to no avail, according to the report.

According to comments on social media, Chen's daughter had died of blood poisoning and pneumonia at the hospital. A hospital employee said the baby was suffering from common illnesses and that her condition had deteriorated rapidly, reported the South China Morning Post.

The National Health and Family Planning Commission and the Public Security Ministry said Chen should face severe punishment.

The incident is only the latest in a series of violent attacks by patients or their families on medical staff in China. There were 27.3 assaults on doctors per hospital in China in 2012, according to a survey by the Chinese Hospital Association, up from 20.6 in 2008.

According to the Ministry of Health, more than 17,000 violent incidents involving medical staff at hospitals were recorded in 2010, up from 10,000 in 2005.