European Court for Human Rights rules Romanian should get EUR 25,000 compensation for bad dental treatment

A Romanian woman will receive a EUR 25,000 compensation as she was subject to alleged medical negligence for dental treatment, according to a judgment of the European Court for Human Rights ECHR. The Romanian woman, who was born in 1952 and lives in Bucharest, underwent dental treatment in September 2001, which she alleges was not carried out correctly by the dentist, given the various problems it caused her – infected gums, cuts and pain. In March 2003, she filed a criminal complaint, requesting a detailed medical expert report to establish if it was medical negligence in her case and to seek compensation. An expert report was issued nine months later, in December 2003, recommending the removal of the prosthetic dental work as it had been inadequately carried out by the dentist. In March 2011 however, the Bucharest District Court acquitted the dentist of medical negligence, saying that the applicant was at fault as she refused to have the dental prosthetics fixed permanently. The decision was subsequently upheld on appeal in October 2011. The Romanian complained about the lack of opportunity to establish whether the dental treatment she had undergone had constituted medical negligence and to obtain appropriate compensation, according to ECHR. When arguing her case, she particularly relied on Article 8 - the right to respect for private and family life. The court found that the Article 8 was violated in this case and ordered the applicant to receive damages of EUR 25,000, plus extra EUR 850 to cover various costs and expenses. Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com