There aren't enough pediatricians, and the Obstetrics and Gynecology department is closing: at the Santissima Trinità hospital in Cagliari, no more births are possible. At least until new doctors arrive.
The facility has achieved excellent numbers and standards, with an average of approximately 1,300 children each year seeing, as if for the first time, the light streaming through the windows of that ward at Is Mirrionis. Yet, the professionals to ensure continuity of service have not been found.
A difficult decision, made by primary school teacher Eleonora Coccollone: "But it's inevitable," she explains, " we must guarantee safety and quality standards. And with the current numbers, that was no longer possible."
Of the nine pediatricians, four are on leave, one is on retirement leave, and another is on maternity leave. "Those who stayed," Coccollone continues, "did everything they could to keep the department open ." But the shortage of doctors has become chronic. And it's proven impossible to ask for overtime to plug the gaps.
The emergency had also been raised with the top management of the Local Health Authority (ASL). A social media campaign had even been launched, attempting to find professionals willing to work in the maternity ward. It all proved futile. The ASL couldn't find any pediatricians. And the ward where the most babies were born in Sardinia closed: "It's incredible, but that's how it is," concludes Coccollone bitterly.
