Language barrier: The woman who has an accidental miscarriage after four months of pregnancy

A healthy mother went to a hospital in Prague in the Czech Republic for a gynecological check-up, but instead underwent an abortion last week after being mistaken for another patient.

“This was an unforgivable human error and those responsible have been suspended. Minister [tchèque de la Santé] Ministry spokesman Ondrej Jacob said on Monday, according to Belgian media outlet 7sur7, that he considered that the victim should be compensated, even if the damage suffered by the mother could not be compensated for by financial means.

Last Monday, the mother went to Polovka Hospital in the capital, Prague, to undergo gynecological follow-up when doctors explained to her the medical procedures for performing an abortion that was intended for another patient.

However, the woman did not speak Czech or German, the two languages ​​common in the country, so she would have signed the declaration submitted by the doctors, even if the document was not in his name, a source reportedly told the Czech channel CNN Prima News.

The victim's lawyer, Dagmar Raubachová, insisted that “staff should have realized that the patient did not understand the content of the statement.”

According to her, the treatment team should have called an interpreter when they realized that the woman did not speak either language.

For its part, the hospital would have apologized to the family in a press statement, while the story would have caused a lot of ink to flow in the country, according to 7sur7. The doctors have been suspended from work, and criminal charges could be brought against them.

Ultimately, the woman could receive compensation amounting to about 10 million Czech crowns, or about $575,000, an expert at CNN Prima News estimated.