24 August 2023: The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) and the Romani Lawyers Association ROMAJUST have taken legal action against a Romanian hospital on behalf of a 24-year-old Romani woman who gave birth outside on the pavement after being refused medical care. The woman, who is deaf and from a Romani community, was denied due to the hospital lacking a gynaecology ward. The Romani woman is from Barbulești, a community where according to the last census almost 80% of the population were Roma. According to the hospital, when the Romani woman arrived at the hospital the manager called an ambulance to take her 60 kilometres away to Slobozia. The reasoning the manager gave to local news was: “we don't have a gynaecology ward." Referring to the lack of specialized doctors, the emergency unit staff were contacted to send an ambulance. However, the patient was not consulted, supervised, or escorted to the ambulance car. Instead, she was told to wait for the ambulance outside the hospital. The woman was not sufficiently cared for by medical staff and was left waiting outside a hospital, where she eventually gave birth on the pavement, sparking local outrage and demands for action. This incident has been deemed "unacceptable" by the Romanian Ministry of Health, who has demanded the dismissal or resignation of the hospital manager. An investigation has been launched to sanction possible incidents of discrimination under the law so that all citizens, regardless of their ethnicity, have equal access to public services and facilities. The incident has prompted calls for better healthcare access, personnel, and facilities for marginalised communities in Romania. For more information or to arrange an interview, contact: Jonathan Lee (in English)
Advocacy & Communications Director
European Roma Rights Centre
jonathan.lee@errc.org
+32 49 288 7679
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