Caracas.- Venezuelan Justice sentenced a doctor to eight years in prison for "culpable homicide" of a newborn, as a result of "obstetric violence", in Falcón state (northwest), the Public Ministry (MP, Prosecutor's Office) reported this Tuesday.
In a press release, the institution explained that the newborn's mother went to a first care center for a checkup due to "severe pains during her pregnancy."You may be interested in: Fifteen people sentenced for trafficking Haitians
After evaluating her situation, specialists "suggested she be immediately transferred to the Dr. Rafael Calles Sierra Hospital", where she was attended by the doctor and "subjected to labor for 13 hours", a period during which "a technique was applied to her" that "causes multiple adverse effects" and, according to the MP, is prohibited by international organizations. "After several hours of labor, during which the newborn remained in the birth canal, it was decided to perform a cesarean section on the patient. Once the baby was extracted, it presented precarious medical conditions and severe neurological damage, so it was admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, where it died hours later," indicated the Prosecutor's Office. The institution indicated that the patient went to the Scientific, Criminal and Criminal Investigations Corps (Cicpc) to report the incident and, after "pertinent investigations and proceedings", it was determined that the "newborn died as a result of the irreversible damage caused by the application of the technique". During the trial, the Falcon Prosecutor's Office ratified the accusation against the doctor for the "commission of negligent homicide on grounds of conscious fault and obstetric violence", the institution added.