By Sara Filips

A Florida nurse may lose her eyesight after a patient brutally attacked her at Palms West Hospital, breaking nearly every bone in her face, according to an arrest affidavit.

Palm Beach County deputies responded to the incident in Loxahatchee on Tuesday around 1:20 p.m. after the patient, 33-year-old Stephen Scantlebury, committed “aggravated battery against a nurse” in a third-floor patient room.

According to the affidavit, the patient, who was at the hospital under Florida’s Baker Act, jumped onto his bed and then jumped onto the nurse.

One witness in the room ran out and called for help, while a second witness yelled at Scantlebury to stop as he drilled his fists into the victim’s face. The affidavit said the suspect then stopped attacking the nurse and ran out of the hospital and into traffic on Southern Boulevard, where he was taken into custody.

The nurse, whose identity is unknown, was taken to St. Mary’s Hospital with critical injuries. The report detailed that “essentially every bone” in the nurse’s face was broken and that she is likely to “lose the use of both eyes.”

HCA Florida Healthcare released a statement, saying the following:

“Our primary concern is with our beloved colleague and we are praying for her recovery. We are also providing support to our hospital staff who are understandably shaken by this incident. The attack on our nursing colleague happened within a matter of seconds and was witnessed by multiple people who came to assist. We are grateful to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office who acted to detain the suspect and we are assisting law enforcement in their investigation.”

Scantlebury was arrested and is undergoing medical clearance. The sheriff’s office said he is facing charges of second-degree attempted murder and is being held on no bond.