Chairman of the Hospital Supervisory Board André Zemp.
Keystone-SDA
The University Hospital Zurich has admitted to serious errors in cardiac surgery from 2016 to 2020. A report documents dozens of deaths.
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An independent investigation has revealed an excess mortality rate of 68 to 74 patients during this period, University Hospital Zurich (USZ) said on Tuesday. The hospital has reported 11 particularly conspicuous deaths and the inappropriate use of medical devices in 13 cases to the public prosecutor’s office. The investigators are to examine whether any criminal offences have been committed.
According to the report, the causes of the abuses lie in a comprehensive management failure. The head of the hospital at the time, Francesco Maisano, was appointed hastily in 2014 and without sufficient examination of his qualifications and conflicts of interest, it said. In addition, the hospital management at the time neglected its duty of supervision and recognised warning signals too late, it said.
Resignations from the hospital board
As a consequence of the findings of the investigation, three long-standing members of the hospital board are stepping down. They want to make a fresh start in terms of personnel. The USZ officially apologised to those affected and their relatives for the suffering they had experienced and set up a special counselling centre.
In the meantime, the Clinic for Cardiac Surgery is said to have regained its good reputation and high quality standards under new management. According to the latest reports, the mortality rate is back in the normal range. The hospital management wants to prevent similar incidents in future with stricter compliance rules, a register for vested interests and a planned whistleblowing system.
Adapted from German by AI/ts
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