Update: Iași hospital management dismissed after six Romanian children die from infections
Update: The seventh child admitted to the “Sfânta Maria” Hospital in Iași died on Saturday, September 27, but the death was announced only two days later, on Monday. The baby girl had been transferred to the “Grigore Alexandrescu” Hospital in Bucharest to receive care, but was already in a critical condition, and tests revealed infection with the bacterium Serratia Marcescens and with Candida.
In a statement released after the death, quoted by G4media.ro, the hospital announced that treatment included targeted anti-infective therapy, transfusions, epidemiological isolation measures, and other precautions, with care provided by our multidisciplinary team of specialists. Despite all of these, the child born with an esophageal issue died from multiple organ dysfunction, cardiac arrest, and “healthcare-associated infection [acquired] in another hospital.”
Initial story: Romania’s health minister, Alexandru Rogobete, announced on Saturday, September 27, that he requested the dismissal of the leadership of the Iași Public Health Directorate and of the Emergency Clinical Hospital for Children "St. Mary," after six children admitted to the ICU died due to infection with Serratia Marcescens.
The minister emphasized that the tragedy did not occur due to a lack of equipment or resources, but because of failure to follow protocols and the delayed response of institutions, and therefore does not rule out further dismissals and sanctions.
“We are talking about a failure to apply protocols, a lack of reaction both from the DSP director and from the hospital. The reaction came far too late, about a week later, after the first three cases infected with this pathogenic germ were identified. For almost 10 days, neither I nor my team could identify how the protocols for limiting these infections were applied,” said Alexandru Rogobete after a visit of more than three hours at “St. Mary” Hospital in Iași.
“I will present all the conclusions, of course, transparently, following the report of the Control Body and the report of the State Health Inspection. If negligence in office is identified, I assure you that I will forward the reports to the General Prosecutor’s Office,” the official added, cited by Biziday.
Another child who had been admitted to ICU block A of “St. Mary” Hospital and infected with Serratia was transferred to a hospital in Bucharest, where the test turned negative after three days. Two other children, admitted in the same area of the medical unit, proved to be negative for this pathogenic germ as well.
Along with the dismissals, the minister also announced measures to prevent nosocomial infections. Among these are the creation of a national program for the procurement of disinfectants, protective materials, equipment, and supplies to reduce infections associated with medical care, legislative changes, and mandatory training for medical staff on the prevention and limitation of nosocomial infections.
Also included are the expansion of ICU teams with staff specialized in infection control and monitoring, including the inclusion of epidemiologists in staffing norms, and the immediate application of sanctions for failure to comply with specific protocols.
Romanian authorities began investigating the "St. Mary" Pediatric Hospital in Iași, eastern Romania, after six children died while infected with the Serratia Marcescens bacteria. In total, nine babies at the hospital were infected.
(Photo source: Alexandru Rogobete on Facebook)
