This Ivorian national, faced with the loss of his father-in-law, unleashed his anger in the Smit, attacking not only medical staff, but also precious intensive care equipment that measures patients’ vital signs – heart rate , oxygen saturation, blood pressure… Essential devices for the care of patients in critical situations. L’Observateur reports that, at the time, an arrangement was made between the attacker’s family and the hospital management for reimbursement of damages. However, three months later, no refund has been made.
According to Professor Moussa Seydi, head of Smit, “this equipment is vital for patients who come for treatment at Smit. This kind of behavior is inconceivable, imagine that a Senegalese would act like this abroad! “. Furious at the broken promises, Professor Seydi decided to take the matter to the police and inform the Minister of Health by letter, in the hope of official intervention.
The details of this attack are damning. The attacker entered the unit around 4 p.m., violently attacked the doctor on duty, overturned the treatment cart, and destroyed the monitor before leaving the hospital without being detained. The Observer specifies that the police, although present on the scene after the incident, were unable to intervene due to the amicable agreement. But for the healthcare team, the incident remains a shock and highlights the precariousness of staff in the face of unjustified violence.
“How many Senegalese families lose a loved one every day? They never attack doctors or destroy equipment,” laments a hospital surgeon. For Fann hospital staff, this attack is an alarming signal about safety in critical services.
While the case is now in the hands of the authorities, Professor Seydi hopes that justice will be done and that measures will be taken to strengthen the protection of medical personnel in a context where they face, on the front line, the most sensitive emergencies and delicate.
Senegal
