Head of "Sheinovo" hospital: Those responsible for the switching of the babies will be punished, there was no intent in what happened

A string of coincidences and a mistake of one person who messed things up in the beginning - this is how the director of “Sheinovo” Hospital, Dr. Rumen Velev, described the case with the switching of two babies in the hospital. He assured that the people who contributed to what happened will be seriously punished.

Dr. Velev added that he is ready to resign if it is found that there were procedural violations that led to what happened.

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Investigation at the moment shows that the babies were most likely switched in their bassinets before the first handover to the mothers.

"The mothers and the babies had matching identification wristbands, but the mother with wristband A was given a baby with wristband B. This is absolutely unacceptable. Many authorities are investigating how this situation happened. There are disturbing facts that cannot be explained at the moment. During the entire hospital stay, neither of the two mothers paid attention to the numbers on the wristbands. On discharge, they were not checked, which is our responsibility, of the hospital. Also, 3 months is a long time for a person not to look at their wristbands. I have been an obstetrician-gynecologist for 30 years, this is the first time I have witnessed such a case and to tell you the truth - I have no explanation, but I am aware that there was no intent," said Dr. Velev.

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Speaking to the media, he apologised to the affected families on behalf of the entire team at the hospital and said that the hospital was ready to assist with whatever they could to resolve the situation.

Both families are cooperating exclusively with the law enforcement authorities, thanks to which, the facts have been clarified very quickly, he added.

Dr. Velev pointed out that all the Obstetrics and Gynaecology hospitals in Bulgaria work according to the same rules ensuring that every newborn is properly identified and matched to their mother. After the incident, “Sheinovo” hospital is considering the option of looking for a new type of bracelets with a barcode that would secure identification even better.

Yesterday, December 21, a scandalous case of baby switching in the hospital became known. Pre-trial proceedings have already been initiated, and in case of proven intent, the law provides for up to 2 years of imprisonment for the guilty parties.