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DREPTATE PENTRU FLORENTINA
27 septembre 2010

30th August: Florentina's release denied

The news today is that Simona Parvu's request for Florentina Carstea's release from custody has been denied. I do not understand it, cannot make sense of it...while Dima roams around free as a bird on grounds of health and age, this woman remains behind bars. It is unthinkable, unjust and incomprehensible. This from Cotidianul (translated by me so excuse the prose)

Florentina Cârstea remains in custody

'The nurse arrested for the Giulesti Maternity Hospital fire will remain behind bars. The Bucharest Magistrates Court rejected her lawyer's appeal today in the case of the deaths and serious injurires caused by negligence.

Florentina Cârstea was placed under preventive custody for a period of 29 days, last week. According to investigators, the nurse left the room without justification where the fire broke out in which five babies died.

According to  Telegraph, her lawyer requested that her client be released, arguing that, as a health professional, she could not be held responsible for the production of a fire or any other unexpected event. Counsel also submits that under Florentina Carstea's job description, she was not required to remain permanently in one room. Florentina Carstea's lawyer argued in court that when the fire broke out, the nurse had already been on duty for 11 hours, and was doing the job of six people.

In turn, the prosecutor asked that the nurse be investigated whilst in custody since the incident had caused panic to both civil society and mistrust within the whole Romanian medical system .

In this case, the head of the technical department for Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital ' Prof. Dr. Panait Sarbu " Dima Vasile was also detained. He is still being investigated, but has been released.'

Here is another article from today's Mediafax. There is a little more information here. The court also rejected a demand for psychological support claiming her 'mental condition' to be 'poor'. I bet it is. The whole appeal lasted 45 minutes and took three hours to reach a conclusion. Florentina's family, friends and colleagues were present in court.

Another article in Mediafax says that Dima has been left free due to his age and health and that his actions were negligent but unintentional so he's not a danger to the public and it's normal that he be released. What? Is this suggesting that Florentina's actions were intentional? That she intentionally didn't save the babies? That she noticed a fire and left the room on purpose? That it's okay for Dima to be negligent and in his negligence putting at risk a whole department while it's NOT okay for Florentina to be negligent and away from her post 12 minutes of a very long and arduous 12h shift? What world are we living in? What is going on here? I am lost for words... The article says that Dima is seriously ill. Oh really? Since when? He was working until two weeks ago so when did he become so sick?

Voilà, the news. I am so angry I am shaking from head to foot. Florentina Carstea was at the end almost of her 12 hour shift. She could not remain in one room for 12 hours firstly since she was doing the job of 6 other people (please highlight that in your opinion-forming and relate it to the cuts, the poor management, the bad scheduling and the inhumanity of this length of shift, not once but on many occasions and ask whose fault that was) and secondly because she is a human being who needs to go to the bathroom, needs to eat, needs to move around, needs to speak to colleagues (she was assistant chief of ITU)...anyone who does not see this important point, well, I suggest they try a 12 hour shift themselves in one room without moving and see how they cope with it. And she is guilty for civic panic and mistrust in the health service??? Ca ne va pas, non??? What kind of rubbish is that? Why don't we also blame her for the diappearance of the Mayas, the earthquake in Haiti and the Second World War - yes, it's that ridiculous.

I would like to make some notes as my cogitations take form:

1) Florentina Carstea has nursed at Giulesti for 12 years. Her conduct has always been exemplary, and we know from letters written by her colleagues and on the Order of Nurses site that she was dedicated. Her professional file was flawless up to this point.

2) Florentina is a NURSE. She is not an electrician. She is not a specialist in aircon or fuseboxes. She knows about medical equipment but not the workings of a network. She is NOT responsible for the 9 year old aircon system that hadn't been correctly upgraded or even correctly inspected in all that time. Dima is the culprit for this and there is no justice whatsoever in keeping her behind bars while he is out and about, albeit being 'investigated'.

3) Florentina did not do the scheduling on the ward and she did not even have the right to agree or disagree with it. Nurses have a job to do and they get on with it, in Roumania as everywhere else.

4) Florentina was doing the job of 6 people. She was not responsible for this. She was not responsible for cuts in budget, frozen job positions, lack of staff and appalling management. This is Cseke, Marinescu and Ranga.

5) Florentina was not the ONLY member of staff with a swipe key. There were 8 others. Where were they? Florentina has no idea. Perhaps at the St Mary's party? We do not know because she was never there to be able to tell us who was present and who was not. All 8 people with swipe keys are as responsible as Florentina.

6) Florentina Carstea would not have been able to save all the babies even if she HAD been there. Due to a wooden cupboard in the room that should not even have been there, the compressed oxygen tanks etc, the fire engulfed the room so fast that had she been present, she would never have managed to save them all by herself. Think on that.

7) If Florentina Carstea who, frankly is at the bottom of the pyramid of blame, must remain incarcerated, then so should Dima, Marinescu and Ranga. Neither of the latter two have said a word of support for Florentina, their 'colleague'. I come from a world of hospitals where people stick together, cover for each other and support each other in dire instances. Florentina has been treated like a leper and cast out by everyone in management when the fault lies entirely there with them.

8) When Florentina was arrested she had ZERO legal representation. In her panic, horror and much more, she talked without a lawyer present. Her ghead was all over the place, her thoughts a scramble... Give me one person who wouldn't have lied or made mistakes...Marinescu turned up for questioning with a lawyer present. Florentina's various statements were blabbed willy-nilly to the press by her lawyer. What kind of lawyer does that? A bad one. Marinescu's lawyer hasn't said a word. I have seen nothing regarding his statement nor what went on behind those closed doors. That is called defence, taking care of a client. Simona Parvu grossly mismanaged the legal proceedings and Florentina is paying for it alla grande.

I have just been told on good authority that a release could occur in only two situations: a) for bail (how much we still do not know and if so, the amount will surely be foudn somewhere somehow) or through b) juducial control. Her lawyer is no longer answering the telephone so getting info on how either possibility could be arranged is hard for the person with whom I am in contact.

This is the most massive miscarriage of justice I have ever seen in my life.

Accusing and sentencing Florentina Carstea is NOT going to change a thing in the medical system of Romania. She is not a solution for blame and guilt. She is the ONE person in this whole tragic farce who has accepted her portion of guilt and responsibility. Get that, the ONE SOLITARY decent human being. The others? Not a word. Marinescu, Ranga, Dima - they should all three be strung up and left out to dry. Why isn't the media attacking them, pulling their personalities apart, calling them monsters and murderers because, you know, THEY ARE!!! Sure, you're wondering 'why is she bothering with this - it's been two weeks and still this woman keeps yelling!' Of course I do. It is the obscene injustice of the whole thing, the passing of the buck, the justice system looking almost as outrageous as the health system. Romania should be caring for its devoted nurses, not accusing them of manslaughter because they had the audacity to leave a room for 12 minutes over a twelve hour shift - a room, incidentally, where they were not even obliged to be 100% of the time. Excuse the vulgarity here, but what was she meant to do? Wet her knickers? Be serious. Be reasonable.

Incidentally, a nurse had a heart attack due to overwork and exhaustion at G.Alexandrescu yesterday. On being resuscitated, she was transferred to Floreasca where she died today. It is clear that there was precedence of cardiac history...but a nurse of such fragility was working long, hard hours just like Florentina. The result was sadly fatal.

The fire broke out because of negligence, money pinching and incompetence. None of that is HER fault. None of it. Not even a bit. She is guilty of not being clairvoyant, not being present when the fire broke out, needing the bathroom. Shame on any of you who think otherwise. Shame, shame, shame. And shame on you too if you feel fine sitting there doing nothing because everythings fine between your own four walls.

One stupid argument I heard yesterday was that medical assistants are all the same so it was impossible to support her - they are disagreeable and want spaga for everything. Okay, let's dissect this. Yes for sure, there are some VERY disagreeable medical assistants and sure too, there is spaga to be paid for everything. I am sure that Florentina could be disagreeable too - can't we all sometimes especially if we are working 12h shifts regularly - and she may have taken spaga, too. But that is YOUR fault!!! It is YOUR fault for not speaking out, rallying protests and for doing nothing to change anything because the reason given is 'nothing will ever change so what's the point'...pathetic. Not an argument. Nurses take spaga to sustain a living as their salaries are pitiful. The system is responsible for spaga, the voters and people who sit on their behinds moaning about it but doing nothing. Vicious circle - you don't like spaga but you pay it anyway... doctors are even WORSE than nurses. Just last week I heard about a friend who had had to pay 1600 euros to a surgeon so he would perform a femur repair after her 80 year old husband had a fall...is that normal? Stop the 'holier than thou' attitude. You know as well as we do that Florentina is responsible for NONE of that. Not the sour-puss face, not the long shifts, not the spaga. The system IS. Prosecuting Florentina will not change the system. Prosecuting management may have more impact. Think about it. And when you are done thinking and considering how you're fine in your house, you're healthy, the kids are doing well, take a look beyond at this woman who also has a home and a child. Take a look at her life which has been utterly desecrated by accusations and slurs from the press, the label of murderer, the defamation she has had to put up with since 17th August, the separation from her child, the knowledge that she was there, the babies were under her SOLE responsibility and they died or were severely injured. Imagine her thoughts. Imagine her dreams if she can sleep. And imagine if you were her. A little compassion, a little empathy, a little more humanity, please, from the country of my heart, a people of whom I thought better and higher... Not allowing Florentina Carstea psychological support is nothing worse than torturous. It is immeasurably cruel and the judge who refused should be struck off. Dima is let free because he is seriously ill and old (68 is not old, I would like to add here) but Florentina is not allowed psychological aid. Rusine...

I am profoundly sickened by the lack of humanity towards Florentina Carstea. I only hope she knows, is aware, that she does have support, there are people who care about her and what happens to her, that do not believe she should carry the can for a list of massive blunders, infringements, indifference and incompetence that have NOTHING to do with her.

Here endeth the rant - at least here on this blog. Please, if you have not done it, go and sign the petition at the Order of Nurses site. It will take two seconds of your time. If you don't and yet you feel she has been unjustly held and accused, then in not signing it you are as bad as the management of Giulesti - you too are passing the buck and personally, I have lost patience with such people... I am 'hors de moi'.

PS - just found another petition for Florentina - HERE

Posté par Sarah in Romania à 15:05 - Commentaires [5] - Rétroliens [0] - Permalien

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