Pai de bebê denuncia omissão do Samu na BA; Secretaria investiga.

‘Tinha muitas chances de vida’, says father of baby who reported omission of help from Samu in BA; Secretariat investigates the case

On Wednesday, May 5th, a baby died in Santo Antônio de Jesus, a city located in the interior of Bahia, after his parents searched for help from the Mobile Emergency Care Service (Samu) and did not receive adequate assistance. According to the family, they called three times for an ambulance but received no response.

The child’s father, Gustavo da Silva, reported in an interview with TV Bahia that his son had been born prematurely at 29 weeks and was taken to Maternidade Luiz Argolo – a hospital in Santo Antônio de Jesus – where he stayed for three months until he was discharged on April 18th.

After a few days at home, the baby’s health deteriorated, and the parents took him to a public health unit where he received care and was transferred to another hospital, Bahia’s Women’s Hospital, still in Santo Antônio de Jesus. The boy’s father reported that when his son arrived at the hospital, the child was in critical condition and in need of a respirator. However, the hospital did not have the necessary equipment at the time, and the Samu was called to transport the child to another hospital with a respirator.

After waiting for a long time without receiving any response from the Samu, the father decided to transport his son to another hospital in his own car. On the way, the child continued to deteriorate until he stopped breathing. The father stopped the car, gave him CPR but to no avail.

“The Samu did not arrive; we called three times. They didn’t come, and my son died. He had many chances of life, but they didn’t help us,” said the child’s father in an interview.

According to the Health Department of Bahia (Sesab), a dispatch has been opened to investigate the case. In a note, the Sesab reported that “it is awaiting the completion of the forensic expert report to determine the causes of the child’s death, whose body was transferred to the Forensic Medical Institute (IML) of Santo Antônio de Jesus”.

The Samu service has the responsibility to provide the prehospital care service, in addition to transporting patients to hospitals, including those who are in critical condition. In cases where the health unit does not have sufficient conditions to attend to a patient, the Samu’s transport service is indispensable, and the delay or lack of response from the service can compromise the patient’s chances of survival.

The case adds to the scenario of health care crises in Brazil, which also reflect the neglect of public policies and the shortage of medical equipment and materials in hospitals.

Last week, on Thursday, April 29th, during a Senate hearing, Dr. Miguel Nicolelis, a neuroscientist researcher and coordinator of the Pernambuco Covid-19 expert committee, spoke about the critical situation in the country’s health system, especially in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to Nicolelis, one of the main problems is the shortage of oxygen and the overload of health professionals in the hospitals, which has caused many deaths, mainly in the Northeast region of Brazil.

“The situation is chaotic, and it is clear that the government’s strategy has completely failed,” said Nicolelis.

Faced with this scenario, it is essential to pressure public authorities to take effective measures to ensure access to health care for the population, especially the most vulnerable, such as children and the elderly.

It is important that people report cases of negligence and omission of health service to avoid more deaths and guarantee the right to health for all.