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HOSPITAL

Epinal radiation scandal goes to trial

A hospital accused of administering extra high doses of radiation to cancer patients - involving 500 victims, seven of whom died - goes to court today in Paris after six years’ investigation.

Published: 24 September 2012 10:57 CEST

Seven members of staff at the Jean Monnet hospital in Epinal, north eastern France, will be tried, including two doctors, one radiologist and four public health professionals.

The alarm was first raised in 2006, when it was discovered that several hundreds of patients, mostly being treated for prostate cancer, had received doses of radiation well over the recommended amount.

It is thought the malpractice started as early as 2001, where more than 400 patients received a dose 8 to 10 percent higher than they should have. Between May 2004 and August 2005, 24 patients reportedly received doses 20 percent higher.

Two theories have been put forward for the error – the wrong measurement may have been entered into the software of new apparatus which were put in place in 2004, and a failure to recognise the extra high doses when measuring radiation levels after the treatment.

Families of the victims and other patients at the hospital hope the trial will uncover why the affair was left hidden for so long.

Doctors reportedly knew of the mistakes made in 2006, but failed inform patients until an inspection discovered them in 2007.

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STATISTICS

Norway saw fewer hospital patients in 2020 despite pandemic

Fewer patients were treated in hospital in 2020 than in 2019, with Covid-19 being the reason for the drop, according to Statistics Norway.

Published: 13 April 2021 16:25 CEST
Norway saw fewer hospital patients in 2020 despite pandemic
Illustration photo by Audun Braastad / AFP)

The decline in patients has been largest for those awaiting planned treatments, but the number of people requiring immediate attention also dropped too, according to Statistics Norway figures.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, hospitals had to prioritise differently in 2020 as a result of the increased need for intensive care units.

“2020 was a year marked by pandemics and restrictions. In many places hospitals have had to prioritise differently due to the coronavirus, and perhaps particularly as the result of the increased need for intensive care,” the report said.

This has contributed to a decrease in the number of patients in hospitals at all levels of care.

The number of patients with 24-hour stays decreased by 7 percent. The total number of days spent in hospital fell by 11 percent or 380,000 fewer days in a hospital bed in 2020 compared to 2019.

Hospital stays lasting at least 24 hours include both planned and unplanned visits. In 2020 planned visits accounted for 29 percent of all visits, which is a decrease of 16 percent from the previous year, while visits for immediate appointments decreased by 3 percent.

READ ALSO: Norwegian senior medic calls for geographical division of Covid-19 restrictions

The figures show a decline for almost all diagnostic groups, but cancer patients had a smaller decline than other groups.

Planned treatment of various forms of cancer decreased by 8 percent, but acute help for tumours saw an increase of 11 percent.

This reverses a trend of numbers of patients in hospitals increasing year on year. The increases had primarily been driven by patients at outpatient clinics.

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