The Larnaca District Court today found guilty Dr. Heracles Pantelidakis, one of the two doctors accused in the May 2018 death of student Stavros Giorgallis, 10 years old from Klaydia, Larnaca district.
Specifically inn a multi-page decision issued today, Friday 20 May and as broadcast in a previous report, the Court found doctor Heracles Pantelidakis guilty, who at the time in question was a general practitioner at the Larnaca General Hospital's CICU, while acquitting and discharging from the charges doctor Kyriakos Kyriakides, who was then the director of the department.
According to the Court's verdict, Dr Pantelidakis acted recklessly, carelessly and dangerously and did not study the x-ray of the 10-year-old as he should have done when he was transferred to Larnaca Hospital after an accident and a blow to the head at Alethrico Primary School.
The two doctors were charged with causing death by reckless, reckless or dangerous act, and more specifically that when examining little Stavros they failed to detect the skull fracture in the X-ray, failed to seek the opinion of a radiologist and, instead of placing him under observation, discharged him, thereby causing his death.
Specifically, in its findings, the Court stated that defendant 1 i.e. Dr. Pantelidakis "saw only for a few seconds the x-ray of the 10-year-old, which depicted the fracture, but failed to recognize it. Despite the fact that the incident before him was a blow to the head, he did not investigate the x-ray, did not process it, did not consult a radiologist and dismissed Stavros with instructions."
It is further added that "as evidenced by documentary evidence, Stavros' death was caused by a severe craniocerebral injury. Therefore, the first dangerous, reckless, reckless, hasty and negligent act attributed to the defendants by the indictment, which was the springboard for the other actions that resulted in Stavros' death, was the misdiagnosis of the x-ray that led to the incorrect assessment of a mild head injury and discharge."
The Court further notes that "the defendant's failure to identify the fracture resulted in his erroneous treatment of the incident as a mild head injury and discharge. The defendant was negligent and in this case had a duty of care to Stavros and knowingly assumed a risk when he chose to opine on the x-ray himself without seeking assistance from a radiologist, a task which he performed incompetently insofar as he looked at the x-ray for too short a time without processing it."
Objectively, stated the Board's findings, "the defendant's attitude was reckless, imprudent and dangerous because he is not a radiologist, he is not a neurosurgeon, he looked at Stavros' x-ray too briefly, did not examine it carefully and did not identify the fracture depicted. His misdiagnosis certainly deprived Stavros of the right to a proper evaluation of his health condition, and to treatment, monitoring or advice, depending on what he was actually experiencing."
Stavros was "robbed of the right to proper hospitalization and the hope of recovery."
Stavros was "robbed of the right to proper hospitalization and the hope of recovery. Because of the injury the 10-year-old had, his condition deteriorated when he arrived home and by the time he arrived at the hospital the second time, it was too late," adding that the details of the offense for the defendant "are all proven."
It is further noted that "the defendant was objectively negligent and his actions were reckless, dangerous and careless. It goes without saying, and they all said so, that if the fracture had been detected then Stavros' course of hospitalization would have been different" while the handling of the incident, where it was a fractured skull, should have been commensurate with the injury.
Referring to defendant 2, i.e. Dr. Kyriakidis, the Court notes that "all the testimony that has been offered does not involve him at all in the process of examination and diagnosis of Stavros' condition and does not relate him at all to the events in question to the extent that his criminal responsibility arises. Defendant 2 did not undertake any medical act, had no involvement, active or otherwise, either as a perpetrator or as an accessory, in the acts recorded in the details of the offence and since he did not see the X-ray, misdiagnose and examine Stavros, he had no active involvement in the incident."
The Court set Thursday May 26 as the date for pleas in mitigation for the defendant.
It is recalled that the 10-year-old was taken to Larnaca General Hospital when, while playing basketball during gym class at the Aletriko Primary School where he was attending, he fell to the ground and hit his head.
After being examined by the doctors of the Accident and Emergency Department, he was discharged and a few hours later, his mother took the 10-year-old back to the hospital after he had pains in his head.
The 10-year-old was subsequently taken by ambulance to Nicosia General Hospital where he died in surgery.
Source: CNA
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