Professional Liability in Healthcare: Commentary on the Judgment of the Court of Vicenza No. 262/2023
On February 2, 2023, the Court of Vicenza issued a significant ruling regarding healthcare professional liability, rejecting the compensation claims made by P.A.L.F. for the death of her mother, B.R., which occurred as a result of a Covid-19 infection during a hospital stay. The ruling highlighted several legal and factual aspects that deserve careful analysis.
The Case and the Plaintiff's Requests
The lawsuit was brought by P.A.L.F., who argued that the Covid-19 infection occurred within the San Bortolo Hospital in Vicenza, due to negligence on the part of the healthcare facility. The plaintiff sought compensation for both economic and non-economic damages, quantifying her claims at over 367,000 euros.
- Economic damage for funeral expenses: 2,700 euros.
- Non-economic damage for loss of family relationship: 284,394.30 euros.
- Terminal biological damage: 30,000 euros.
- Terminal moral damage: 50,000 euros.
The defendant, Azienda ULSS 8 B., argued instead that the infection could have occurred prior to hospitalization and that no negligence had been found in the management of the patient.
The responsibility of the healthcare facility must be proven with a causal link between the infection and its conduct.
The Court's Evaluations
The Judge, examining the evidence, noted that the patient was admitted on April 1, 2020, and the swabs taken on April 2 and April 6 tested negative. Only the swab on April 15 showed a positive result for the virus, suggesting that the infection could have occurred prior to hospitalization. This led the Judge to conclude that the evidence for a causal link between the facility's conduct and the death was not sufficiently demonstrated.
Furthermore, it was established that the hospital had complied with the safety protocols in place during that critical period. Testimonies from various healthcare workers confirmed the implementation of appropriate protective measures to prevent the spread of the virus.
Conclusions
The ruling of the Court of Vicenza represents an important precedent in the field of healthcare liability. It emphasizes the need to demonstrate a clear causal link between the conduct of the facility and the damage suffered by the patient. Additionally, it highlights how the preventive measures adopted by hospitals during the pandemic emergency were deemed adequate to exclude liability for nosocomial infection.
In conclusion, despite the pain of loss, jurisprudence requires solid and clear evidence when it comes to attributing responsibility in complex contexts such as healthcare, especially during a period characterized by uncertainties like that of the Covid-19 pandemic.
