Mater Dei Hospital officials are investigating the death of an elderly woman in a corridor of Mater Dei Hospital last night, but management officials said she was given all possible care.

The woman's death was raised in the afternoon by the shadow minister for health, Claudette Buttigieg, who demanded an explanation. 

She said that the equipment needed to save the woman's life was not available in the corridor, which links  the Emergency Department to the Medical Imaging section.

This was a serious case that could not be ignored, and the Parliamentary Secretary for Health, Chris Fearne, needed to explain, Ms Buttigieg said.

She said there was no doubt that doctors and paramedics had done all they could to save the woman’s life but they did not have the equipment they needed.   

Ms Buttigieg said that this patient's death was the most serious of a number of cases the Opposition had been told about, all of which showed how the dignity of patients, nurses and doctors was being undermined.

The parliamentary secretary, she said, had a lot to answer for. Although the situation at the hospital had never been never perfect, the current situation was unprecedented and this was the result of decisions taken by the hospital management in the past months, not least since  Ivan Falzon was appointed Mater Dei chief executive.

HOSPITAL ADMINISTRATION REACTS

In a press conference a few hours later, Mr Falzon and clinical director Joseph Zarb Adami expressed condolences over the death of the woman, but said everything was done to save her.

They confirmed that she was treated in the corridor, but said all medical equipment was available. It was only the comforts usually found int he wards, such as TV, which were missing.

Mr Falzon said that while an investigation was under way, it appeared that the patient was given all treatment according to established procedures, including CPR.

The area was also adequately manned, with four nurses for 25 patients. 

The hospital officials also pointed out that in the first two weeks of this year Mater Dei Hospital had 425 more admissions than in the same period last year. 

PN REACTS 

In a reaction, the Nationalist Party criticised Parliamentary Secretary Chris Fearne for having failed to give a personal explanation, sending hospital officials instead.

Ms Buttigieg said she was still awaiting explanations on the sanitary facilities in the hospital corridors as well as patient privacy and the whereabouts of the Labour 'roadmap' for this sector.