Search

The article discusses how a series of serious medical malpractice cases in Romania have sparked a nationwide debate about standards of health care in the country. The article cites an incident where the parents of a new born baby blamed hospital staff for the irreversible brain damage their son was born with. The incident is an example of what Romanians claim are lethally poor medical standards in the country's entire health-care sector. The Doctors' College, which is the only professional body in Romania entitled to take measures against doctors over malpractice, has been heavily criticized by the public for its role in ensuring doctors achieve the highest professional and ethical standards.

The article reports on living conditions for orphans in Romania. The author reviews how most orphans in Romania are simply abandoned by mothers too poor to care for them properly. There is new legislation in Romania that states that children cannot be put into orphanages until they reach the age of 2 years. According to the author, overworked doctors and nurses in Romania have no time to spend with young orphans. The article also discusses new legislation that bans foreigners from adopting Romanian children. UNICEF statistics related to the issue of abandoned children in Romania are reviewed. Comments regarding the issue from various adoption officials are also discussed, including a spokesman from the National Authority for the Protection of Children's Rights.

Offers a look at rates of depression and mental health care in post-Communist Romania. Incidence of depression and mental illness in Romania; Report that rates of depression have doubled since the fall of Communism in Romania in 1989; Impact of economic conditions on mental illness; Description of the response to mental illness in Romanian culture; View that awareness of mental health issues is low in Romanian society; Claim that mental health services are scarce in Romania.

The article reviews the film "We'll Never Meet Childhood Again," about children in Romania who are infected with HIV; no credits or production information are provided.

The article focuses on the results of a World Bank financed study of bribery in Romania's health sector, which show that around $1 million is spent every day on informal payments to medical staff. The article includes comments on the issue from Romanian Health Minister Eugen Nicolaescu. It is reported that ministers in Romania where shocked and spurned to action by the report, despite the inference that corruption in the health care sector is commonplace in post-communist eastern Europe.