Radio România Internațional

Tag: disinfectants scandal

  • The Hexi Pharma Scandal

    The Hexi Pharma Scandal

    A large-scale scandal is now revealing how feeble the Romanian health-care sector is. Just a few weeks ago, a journalistic investigation showed how the concentration of disinfectants supplied by Hexi Pharma to health-care units all over the country was up to ten times lower than legally required. Such accusations are serious, given that patients’ lives really depend on how sterile operating rooms, instruments and wards are.



    Controls conducted in dozens of hospitals across the country have substantiated the conclusions of the journalistic investigations. The findings were so worrying that surgery was cancelled for days in some hospitals. Overwhelmed by the situation, the Health Minister resigned and the General Prosecutors’ Office started investigating Hexi Pharma, accused of carrying out activities running counter to disease prevention and counterfeiting.



    President Klaus Iohannis and PM Dacian Ciolos talked about the situation and decided the law on public procurement in the health-care sector had to be rapidly amended, so as to ensure a tighter control of products used in hospitals. Therefore, a standardization of such procurement would lead to equipping health-care units with materials that observe legal parameters and therefore do not put people’s lives in danger.



    As for how long such diluted disinfectants have been used in hospitals, the investigation conducted by the General Prosecutor’s Office will tell. The Romanian Intelligence Service claims that it has for five years sent notifications about the bad quality of the disinfectants used in hospitals to the presidency, the Prime Minister, ministers, prefects, county councils. The chairman of the parliamentary committee in charge of controlling the activity of the Romanian Intelligence Service, Georgian Pop, has announced he is to receive, in the coming days, a report on the notifications submitted to the legal beneficiaries, regarding hospital-acquired infections. Georgian Pop:



    “Which legal beneficiaries have been informed and for how long? These are the main elements of the investigation that is being conducted and it’s quite normal, because it is an issue of public interest. This negative and totally unwanted phenomenon is one of the Intelligence Service’s by-interests, because, after all, it’s a matter of people’s constitutional right to health, the phenomenon has been known and the legal beneficiaries have been informed.”



    Also in relation to this scandal, the National Judges Association has called on the Higher Council of the Magistracy to inform the Judicial Inspection Department about the way in which prosecutor’s offices across the country used the notifications submitted by the Romanian Intelligence Service regarding the use of diluted disinfectants in hospitals. And that because, judges say, the proper use of such information would have prevented thousands of Romanians from getting sick.


    (Translated by M. Ignatescu)

  • The Week in Review, May 9-14

    The Week in Review, May 9-14

    A historic moment for Romania


    On Thursday, the Aegis Ashore missile defence facility
    was opened in Deveselu, southern Romania. The event was attended by the NATO Secretary
    General Jens Stoltenberg and the US Deputy Secretary of Defence, Robert Work.
    The shield is aimed at strengthening Euro-Atlantic Security, adding to NATO’s
    other anti-missile defence capabilities, such as the high-performance radar in
    Turkey and a command and control system in Germany. A second such facility is
    due to be built in Poland and will be rendered operational in 2018. The
    facility in Deveselu is designed to respond to potential ballistic threats,
    especially from the Middle East. The shield does not target any country in
    particular, as the Romanian Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos stressed:




    The Deveselu Facility is a means destined exclusively for
    legitimate defence against ballistic missile threats. It strengthens the NATO
    missile defence capabilities and expands the coverage and protection area for
    the Allied countries in Southern and Central Europe, thus significantly
    reducing the risk of potential attacks with ballistic missiles from outside the
    Euro-Atlantic space.




    Moscow sees the anti-missile defence shield as a threat,
    condemning the opening of the Deveselu facility and announcing it would
    strengthen its own military capabilities.




    The disinfectants scandal


    The technocratic Government in Bucharest, which came to
    power some six months ago, is facing a new crisis. Earlier this week, Health
    Minister Patriciu Achimas Cadariu tendered his resignation amidst a new
    large-scale scandal regarding the use of diluted disinfectants in hospitals.
    Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos, who is now the interim Health Minister, said
    healthcare was a priority of his term in office:




    I want to use the next six
    months to take other structural measures which, even if they don’t
    systematically reform the healthcare system, will at least dig up and clarify some of the problems. I
    want to assure everyone that I will not hide anything, and I will not neglect
    anything.




    According to Prime Minister Ciolos, over the last six-seven
    years Romania has had at least 10 Health Ministers, none of whom seemed capable
    of reforming the system, leading to a string of scandals in recent months.




    IMF recommendations for Bucharest


    The executive board of the
    International Monetary Fund has examined the report of its latest assessment
    mission to Romania in March. On Wednesday, the IMF submitted a number of
    recommendations to Bucharest authorities. The Fund argues in favour of
    continuing reforms aimed at redressing the economy and attracting investors.
    The IMF expects an economic growth of over 4% in Romania this year, and of 3.6%
    in 2017. Experts say the economy is on an upward cyclic trend, supported by the
    recent salary increase in the public sector and the VAT slash, which have
    boosted private consumption. In its recommendations submitted to the Government,
    the IMF signals that the current premises for growth cannot be sustained in the
    absence of reforms. IMF experts have recommended the authorities to stop giving
    in to social pressure. At present, Romania has no ongoing agreement with the
    IMF.




    150 years
    since the establishment of Romanian monarchy


    On May 10,
    Romania celebrated King’s Day, which has this year become a national holiday.
    May 10th has a triple significance for Romania. On May 10, 1866,
    Carol I became ruler of Romania. 11 years later, also on May 10, Romania gained
    its independence and in 1881, on May 10, Romania became a kingdom. Events were
    held in Bucharest and in the mountain resort of Sinaia to mark these
    celebrations. Prince Radu told Radio Romania about the importance of monarchy
    in the history of Romania:


    There were countries who did better than us at the time.
    But if you take a look and compare the great hardships that we had to endure in
    the last centuries, the fact that 150 years later we are all part of the European
    Union, and that the Royal House is close to the people, enjoying their respect
    and confidence, is a miracle. It is one of the reasons that makes each of us
    proud.




    Romanian productions competing in Cannes


    Romanian
    cinematography is again shining at the Cannes International Film Festival,
    which the French newspaper Telerama sees as a joker card for Romanians, who
    are genuinely valued in Cannes.Le Mondeis praising Cristi
    Puiu’s feature Sieranevada, which it describes as a classic ballet, a symphony
    of movement. Part of the official selection, the feature is competing for the
    Palme D’Or and was screened on Thursday. Cristian Mungiu is for the third time
    competing for the Grand Prize with his latest film Graduation. Another
    three Romanian productions are competing in Cannes: Bogdan Mirica’s Dogs,
    which is running in the Un Certain Regard section; 4:15 PM. The End of the
    World, directed by Catalin Rotaru and Gabi Virginia Sarga, competing in the
    short film section, while Alexandru Badea’s All Rivers Flow into the Sea
    is competing in the Cinefondation section.




    Great achievement for Romanian handball


    Last Sunday
    Romanian champions CSM Bucharest made history in Budapest. At its first ever
    participation in Champions League, the team won the trophy after a dramatic
    final against the odds-on favourite Gyor of Hungary. Seen as underdogs, CSM
    fought tooth and nail to win the match 29-26 at the penalty shootout. CSM thus
    becomes the third Romanian team to win the most important inter-club
    competition, after Stiinta Bacau in the 1960-1961 season and Rapid Bucharest in
    the 1963-1964 season.



  • May 11, 2016 UPDATE

    May 11, 2016 UPDATE

    NATO – Romanias president Klaus Iohannis on Thursday is meeting NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltengberg, the presidency reports. On Wednesday, the president met with the US Deputy Secretary of Defence, Robert Work. President Iohannis praised Romanian-US relations, highlighting the favourable premises for consolidating and furthering the Strategic Partnership between the two states. In turn, Robert Work reiterated the USAs commitment at bilateral level, as well as at NATO level with a view to consolidate Euro-Atlantic security and defence. The US Deputy Secretary of Defence also had talks with Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu, who argued in favour of a robust and balanced presence of US and NATO troops on the eastern flank. The US involvement is key to strengthening defence and deterring all possible risks and threats to European security, Romanian Defence Minister Mihnea Motoc said upon meeting with the US official. The meetings in Bucharest come ahead of Thursdays official launch of the anti-ballistic shield in Deveselu, southern Romania.



    DISINFECTANTS SCANDAL – Hexi Pharma, the company involved in the Romanian hospital disinfectant scandal, applied for insolvency with the Bucharest Tribunal. Following inspections checking the quality of the disinfectants used in public hospitals, non-compliant samples were found in tens of Romanian healthcare units. The checks were triggered by a journalist investigation that revealed that the substances provided by Hexi Pharma were even ten times diluted compared to the standard concentration. The Prosecutor Generals Office initiated an investigation in the case. The PM Dacian Cioloş has said that as of today the first concentration reports concerning the Hexi Pharma samples will be available.



    IMF – The International Monetary Fund has analysed the latest report of its assessment mission to Romania, making recommendations to Bucharest authorities. The IMF calls for continuing reforms to redress the economy and attract investment. IMF chief for Romania Reza Baqir says the current positive financial conditions in the public and private sectors are the result of previous progress in implementing reforms, and that any slowdown in this process would lead to Romania losing credibility with its lenders. The last assessment mission to Romania was in March 2016. At present Romania has no agreement with the IMF.



    INVESTIGATION – Former Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Gabriel Oprea, as well as four questers were indicted on Wednesday. They are being accused of abuse of office and embezzlement in a court case regarding illegal purchases with funds from the Information and Internal Protection Department with the Interior Ministry. Gabriel Oprea, at present a Senator, allegedly ordered the increase of the Departments budget to purchase a luxury car, which caused the state a prejudice worth 90,000 euros. This is not the only court case involving Gabriel Oprea. In another investigation Oprea is being accused of abuse of office and the illegal use of the motorcade. In October 2015, a police officer riding in front of the motorcade was killed after his bike fell into a hole in the tarmac.


    THE EKENG CASE – Football player Patrick Ekeng of Dinamo Bucharest had a heart condition, forensic pathologists announced on Wednesday. Doctors need a full autopsy, including the toxicology reports, before announcing the final results. On Saturday, Patrick Ekeng collapsed on the playing field without having any contact with a player. Doctors at the nearby hospital claim the player did not receive proper first aid on the field, which the Dinamo medical team has dismissed. The authorities have launched an investigation. The Prosecutor Generals office is treating the case as manslaughter.



    TENNIS – Romanias best-ranked tennis player Simona Halep, no. 5th in WTA standings, lost to Daria Gavrilova of Russia in the second round of the tournament in Rome. In the same phase, Irina Begu, 35th WTA, grabbed a spectacular win against Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, 6th WTA, after five consecutive defeats against this player. On Saturday, Halep won the WTA tournament in Madrid, after defeating Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia in the final, 62, 6-4. On her road to the final, Halep knocked out Begu in the quarterfinals.



    CANNES – Five Romanian films are taking part in this years International Film Festival in Cannes, which began on Wednesday accompanied by exceptional security measures, following the terror attacks in Paris. Graduation by Cristian Mungiu and Sierra Nevada by Cristi Puiu, both of the two directors already awarded in Cannes, compete for the Palme d’Or, whereas “Dogs, the feature film debut of Bogdan Mirică, was selected in the “Un Certain Regard section. In the short film section the Romanian directors Cătălin Rotaru and Gabi Virginia Şarga have entered the film “4:15 P.M. The end of the world. Finally, this years Cinéfondation selection includes the short film “All Rivers Flow into the Sea by Alexandru Badea.


    (Translated by V. Palcu)

  • The Healthcare System in Romania: an Emergency

    The Healthcare System in Romania: an Emergency

    After decades of medical services getting from bad to worse and authorities watching the phenomenon without apparently caring too much, the Government has finally turned the health-care sector into a priority. Although it is one of the country’s main pillars of development, the healthcare sector has been constantly undermined by lack of funding. However, this is not the only flaw in the system, marred by irregularities that have weakened patients’ trust in hospitals, and, even worse, have put people’s lives in danger on so many occasions.



    The latest scandal in the sector relates to the use of disinfectants in healthcare units. It all started from a journalistic investigation, which revealed that the concentration of these substances, provided by a certain company, was actually ten times lower than what is admitted as normal. Checks conducted in dozens of hospitals have indeed shown that the tested disinfectants did not have the required concentration and quality. As a result, the Health Minister Patriciu Achimas Cadariu resigned, saying that there were many differences of opinion in the committee set up to deal with the issue. The government’s main concern now is to ensure patients’ safety, the former minister has said:



    “Patients should not be drawn into a game where they can get panicked, because this is the only system that we have and healthcare must be properly provided. Disinfectants are part of the problems facing the healthcare sector and also one of the causes of hospital-acquired infections, and these were the priorities of my term in office.”



    The disinfectants scandal has also shown that that there is not even one certified laboratory in Romania able to provide official results as regards the standard concentration of such substances. That is why Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos, who is now also acting as interim Health Minister, has stated that legislative changes will be made soon. Dacian Ciolos:



    “I have called on the state secretaries with the health ministry, especially as over the coming days I will be taking over as interim Health Minister, to come up, by Wednesday, with a draft minister’s order defining procedures regarding biocides. I’m considering several such decisions for the coming period with immediate effect, in order to amend and clarify the legislation in this field.”



    Following recent disclosures, Dacian Ciolos has stated that this sector is a top priority for the Government and has decided to set up a working group, whose long-term goal would be to truly reform the Romanian healthcare system. Specialists have already had a meeting, during which they agreed that it was high time the Romanian health-care sector was brought to public debate.



    (Translated by M. Ignatescu)