Naples, attacks on doctors, President Bruno Zuccarelli meets Prefect Palomba and General De Vita

Attacks on doctors: President Bruno Zuccarelli meets with Prefect Palomba and General De Vita. The complaint: "Many facilities have not yet implemented the necessary measures ." Then the request: "Identify companions and have 24-hour police in emergency rooms."

First the meeting with General Antonio De Vita, Interregional Commander of the Ogaden Carabinieri, then the meeting with Prefect Claudio Palomba to take stock of a situation that is "no longer sustainable".

Bruno Zuccarelli, president of the Order of Physicians of Naples, today concluded a busy schedule of meetings aimed at identifying solutions that can stem the continuous aggression, both physical and verbal, which increasingly distances doctors from the emergency area.

"Clearly, we can't think of structural solutions; Rome must deal with those. But enough talking about an emergency, " says Zuccarelli, "it makes no sense. An emergency is an unforeseen circumstance. Years ago, when attacks were still sporadic, we asked the government to introduce effective tools to nip this hateful phenomenon in the bud . "

" Today we must explore every avenue to stem a widespread and dramatic phenomenon that, understandably, is emptying emergency rooms, the entire emergency-urgency area, and more generally, entire healthcare facilities ." The Order is examining the enormous difficulties experienced daily by hundreds of doctors and – naturally – some now degenerate situations, such as the Cardarelli Hospital in Naples.

"It's unacceptable that in the largest hospital in Southern Italy ," Zuccarelli warned, " we can't find space to house a police force capable of deterring potential attacks before they even begin. During today's meeting, which was also attended by the general directors of various healthcare facilities and representatives of the Carabinieri, the police, and the Guardia di Finanza, the head of Naples' medical staff emphasized the availability and sensitivity shown by Prefect Palomba and General De Vita and asked about the current state of security in the various facilities."

"Unfortunately ," says Zuccarelli, " I've noted that there are still significant delays in the presence of security guards, armored windows, and other measures required to prevent attacks." The president of the Medical Association also called for increased law enforcement presence in high-risk hospitals, with 24-hour patrols, and for mandatory identification of companions in the emergency room because "Covid has taught us that this system significantly reduces acts of violence."

Furthermore, the presence of social workers in emergency facilities is required, and finally, all healthcare providers must be required to file civil actions in the event of assaults. "I thank the Prefect ," Zuccarelli concludes, " for his attention to the issue and for announcing his intention to establish a provincial observatory, which will certainly be invaluable. I also thank him for the importance he has placed on communicating good healthcare and for having decided to bring the issue of assaults to Rome with a request for regulatory intervention."

The Prefect also announced that he wants to prepare a sheet for each facility summarizing the measures implemented.