Three Tons of Compensation for Cardiologists at Ruwaard van Putten Hospital

The Dutch state must pay compensation of 300,000 euros to the last three cardiologists of the former hospital Ruwaard van Putten in Spijkenisse.

The three specialists were in financial difficulty six years ago, when it was suggested to the cardiology department were relatively high mortality rates. In November 2012, they were suspended because everything would go wrong in the ministry. The department was closed and specialists could no longer work

Only ten months later, partial rehabilitation followed, following an investigation by a committee led by Professor Emeritus and Internist Sven Danner. "In 15% of cases, it can be said that there is possible damage or some to the patients caused by the care.In two-thirds of the cases, it was really errors.This seems a lot but it's clear from a national study done a few years ago that you get the same numbers, "Danner said.

But the decline had already begun. After the closure of the cardiology department, fewer patients went to Ruwaard van Putten. The hospital was declared bankrupt on June 24, 2013.

No accumulated pension

In August of this year, it was announced that the three cardiologists had claimed a total of nine million euros to the Dutch state. They pointed out that they could not earn anything for six years and that they were not receiving a pension. Moreover, nobody wanted to work with them after the suspension.

The Dutch state was previously willing to compensate doctors, but only until June 2013, when the hospital went bankrupt. An advance of 50 000 euros has been paid for this purpose.

After the restart

The judgment of the Court of The Hague means that "only" 250 000 euros will be added. The court added that cardiologists probably would not have started working at Ruwaard van Putten Hospital after their suspension, not least because cardiologists at Maasstad Hospital had already resumed work in 2012. The court also felt that specialists had not had the opportunity to work at the hospital born after the recovery: the medical center Spijkenisse

There was still a fourth cardiologist in Ruwaard. His suspension was lifted in March 2013 because he had just been working at the hospital. He found work in another hospital after the bankruptcy.