The public hospital of Saintes (Charente-Maritime), implicated in the recent treatment of a 13-month-old baby in a life-threatening emergency, cited on Monday its lack of pediatric resources to respond to “
legitimate” concerns.
"
parents.
On Sunday March 10, Lou was in respiratory distress and his parents contacted the 15th, who directed them to the medical center located in the hospital center.
Faced with the deterioration of the child's condition, the doctor who received them asked the pediatrician on duty at the hospital for treatment.
“She tells her that the pediatric emergency rooms are closed and that her department is full, so she refuses
,” denounced the girl’s father in an
“angry”
message posted on Facebook.
In uncertainty, the family called back on the 15th. The service then triggered the vital emergency procedure: a Smur team intervened on site and the child
“was stabilized after an hour of treatment in the adult emergency room”
, indicates the hospital management in a
“point of
clarification” published Monday.
“Due to a lack of available space”
in Saintes, she adds, Lou was finally transferred to the Rochefort site for further treatment.
Pediatric emergencies closed to direct access at night and on weekends
“Can we dispense with emergency care just because a department is full?”
asks the father in his message.
“For three years, the Saintes – Saint-Jean-d’Angély Hospital Group has been faced with insufficient pediatric medical staff to maintain all of its missions,”
responds management.
Pediatric emergencies are thus closed to direct access at night and on weekends, with implementation of regulation of care by Samu center 15.
The
“medical-administrative investigation, open to the progress of the care, is extended by the analysis of the protocols and procedures in place to improve coordination”
between medical home, hospital and Samu, concludes the management.