Prot.infezione mortale a Catania: danni familiari 1M€

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Salvatore, an 80al in Syracuse performed a hip replacement surgery on him. However, a few days later, his condition worsened. A swab revealed that two bacteria had attacked the implanted prosthesis, causing a severe infection that did not respond to antibiotic treatment. Salvatore was transferred to a private nursing home for rehabilitation but eventually returned to Umberto I Hospital. Nearly two months after the fall, Salvatore passed away.

His wife and three children sought legal help from the Seminara & Associati law firm in Catania. Their lawyers requested a technical consultation from the Court of Siracusa. Unfortunately, the findings of the expert report brought more pain to Salvatore’s family. The consultant stated that if the operating room had been adequately sterilized, Salvatore’s prosthesis would not have caused any infection.

The civil case filed at the Siracusa Court concluded in 2019, holding the Asp (local health authority) of Siracusa responsible with a compensation of 250,000 euros. However, the Asp appealed the decision, prompting Salvatore’s family to file an incidental appeal requesting an increase in compensation. The Court of Appeals in Catania rejected the main appeal and granted the incidental appeal, ordering the Asp to pay 265,000 euros to the widow and 185,000 euros to each of the three children, totaling almost one million euros.

Salvatore’s lawyers hope that this verdict will encourage hospital administrators to adhere more strictly to sanitation and sterilization protocols.