Citrobacter Verona, the killer bacteria was found in the hospital taps

VERONA – After a year and a half of checks and especially after the legal battle started by a mother, a glimmer of truth can be seen in the Citrobacter tragedy at the Borgo Trento Hospital for Women and Children in Verona. After the death of four babies and the closure of the ward, it is now revealed that the deadly bacteria had lurked in a water tap used by NICU staff. This is the conclusion reached by the report of one of the two commissions appointed by the Veneto Region, as indicated Messenger of the Veneto.

This is the so-called “external commission”, coordinated by Vincenzo Baldo, Professor of Hygiene and Public Health at the University of Padua. According to the conclusions of the external commission, Citrobacter would have colonized the tap, probably due to lack or partial compliance with hygiene measures. Using tap water and not sterile water is probably a fatal mistake. The first controls by the top management of the Verona university hospital began in January and were later interrupted due to the Coronavirus emergency.

The entire obstetric ward – point of birth, neonatal intensive care and pediatric intensive care – was reopened, after on June 12, the general director of Aou Verona, Francesco Cobello, had ordered the closure, proceeding to the total cleaning of the spaces. Another report will be delivered to the Verona Prosecutor.

Citrobacter killed Leonardo in late 2018, Nina in November 2019, Tommaso in March, and Alice on August 16. Another nine reported permanent brain injuries, while 96 would be affected by the bacteria. The perseverance of Francesca Frezza, Mother of Nina: “Nina has undergone therapeutic persistence. We have been denied access to Law 219, a shared care program has never been implemented, despite the poor prognosis that confirmed the irreversibility of the disease and the lack of expectation de He was denied pain therapy through palliative care (Law 38).

Francesca Frezza

Nina found peace and dignity only after asking for her resignation and transferring her to the Gaslini hospital in Genoa, where she was loved and “cared for” with loving assistance until her last breath. I wanted to tell my story so as not to have justice, in this I fully trust the prosecutor of Verona, I asked for a hearing so that this tragedy changes, so that it does not happen again and to send a message that in Italy palliative care exists and all Sick and incurable children are a precious asset of society, they must be protected and respected as persons and as individuals “.