OPEN LETTER TO HEALTH MINISTER ALEXANDRU RAFILA

How many more children need to die in hospitals for the Ministry of Health to react?

Dear Minister,

On January 15, 2025, FACIAS formally requested the immediate deployment of the Control Body of the Minister of Health to the County Emergency Hospital of Targu Jiu. The purpose of this deployment was to ascertain the circumstances that led to the unfortunate demise of 16-year-old Andrei Marius Dragan on November 11, 2024.

Notwithstanding the gravity of the situation, which necessitated an immediate response, the Ministry of Health has thus far been unable to intervene. In light of the investigative authorities' inability to identify and sanction the responsible parties, FACIAS respectfully reiterates its request and underscores the imperative for the Ministry of Health to undertake a prompt investigation and address the grave abuses that have been reported.

Mr. Minister Alexandru Rafila, how many more children have to die due to the negligence of the system for the Ministry of Health to take action?

 A review of publicly available information reveals significant deficiencies in the delivery of emergency medical care, which have been identified as contributing factors to the unfortunate outcome in the case of Andrei. The following issues require verification:

1. The doctor on duty declined to perform the surgical intervention, despite the findings of medical investigations conducted in the emergency room (UPU), which indicated the necessity for immediate surgical intervention to address the diagnosed peritonitis. Furthermore, according to the prevailing legislation, the doctor had an obligation to perform the surgical intervention, as the situation constituted a life-threatening medical emergency.
2. Lack of an available pediatric surgeon, as the on-call surgeon decided not to perform the necessary surgery.

Andrei's transfer to Craiova was delayed due to the absence of a physician on the hospital ambulance from Târgu Jiu. A request was made for a fully-equipped ambulance from Craiova, which arrived a full three hours later. Although the procedure would have permitted a physician from the county hospital to accompany the patient to Craiova, this did not occur.

1. Due to systemic abuses and organizational and administrative shortcomings, which prevented an adequate medical response for a patient in critical condition, at the time of the arrival of the ambulance from Craiova, his condition was incompatible with transport. The death was declared by the doctor on duty at 00:40 on November 12.

            Despite the passage of more than three months since the incident and the involvement of multiple institutions in the investigation (Prosecutor's Office of Targu Jiu District Court, Public Health Department, Gorj College of Doctors, Tg. Jiu, ANMCS), the investigation remains stalled, and a definitive conclusion regarding the responsible party and the violations of procedures has yet to be reached. The following deficiencies have been identified: 

1. Prosecutor's Office of the Targu Jiu District Court According to publicly available information, the investigation has been stalled due to the non-payment of histopathologic expertise, which was requested in this case. Although FACIAS has offered to cover the expenses of this expertise since February 5, 2025, to facilitate the resolution of the investigation, the authorities have demonstrated a lack of urgency and have not yet responded.
2. An endless investigation at the County Emergency Hospital of Targu Jiu and the hospital's Disciplinary Investigation Commission's delays. Initially, the report was returned for completion by order of the hospital manager, as it did not contain elements on the conduct of the doctors involved in providing medical care to the minor patient. Subsequently, one of the members of the commission retired and the hospital manager asked the Ministry of Health to appoint a replacement. According to the reply received by FACIAS from the County Emergency Hospital of Targu Jiu, the culprit for this delay is the Ministry of Health itself, which responded to the request of the County Emergency Hospital of Targu Jiu only on 07.02.2025, but by the date of the reply given to FACIAS, 14.02.2025, the commission had not yet met.
3. 000 lei - the price of a child's life. The only sanction applied by the DSP-SCSP Gorj to Dr. Neagu Valentin Constantin Neagu was for failure to provide all necessary medical services to a 16-year-old patient in critical condition in the UPU-SJU Tg-Jiu, according to the legal regulations in force and the patient's UPU chart.

It is evident that the local authorities involved in the investigation are unable to effectively manage the situation, resulting in their inability to identify and sanction those responsible. This failure to address the issue in a satisfactory manner highlights the authorities' deficiencies in handling such a grave situation. In this context, the intervention of a competent supervisory authority is imperative to objectively assess the circumstances that have led to the investigation's impasse and determine whether the delays are warranted or if they are a form of procrastination intended to protect potential individual responsibility.

FACIAS referred the case to the Prosecutor's Office of the High Court of Cassation and Justice and demanded that those responsible for Andrei's death be held accountable.

Minister, your intervention is imperative. Urgently dispatch the Control Body to the County Emergency Hospital of Targu Jiu to shed light on Andrei's death!