Monaldi, after the Caliendo case, a domino effect has been triggered: operations cancelled and departments without specialists.

The case of little Domenico Caliendo continues to have a severe impact on the organization of Monaldi Hospital. The facility now faces a dual challenge: on the one hand, declining patient confidence, with a flood of cancellations for scheduled visits and surgeries; on the other, the difficulty of rebuilding the pediatric cardiac surgery staff, which has been effectively paralyzed following the suspension of the doctors involved in the legal case.

A combination of factors that risks slowing down the clinical activity of one of the main cardiology centers in Southern Italy.

Cancellations and bookings in decline

In recent days, hospital offices have been experiencing an unusual phenomenon: last-minute cancellations and a sharp decline in new appointments. The cancellations primarily concern the cardiology and cardiac surgery departments, but are not limited to them.

The climate of uncertainty generated by the Caliendo case—the failed transplant that led to the opening of an investigation—seems to have fueled fears among some patients. A case discussed a few days ago at a management meeting is emblematic: a young woman in her early eighteenth year, recalled for admission for cardiac surgery that had been booked months before, decided to forgo the procedure.

Similar signals are also coming from other departments. In some clinics, such as the ophthalmology department, several scheduled cataract surgeries have been canceled.
Pediatric cardiac surgery almost stopped

The most sensitive issue, however, remains pediatric cardiac surgery. Surgical activity in this sector has been essentially halted following the suspension of the head physician, Guido Oppido, and his assistant, Gabriella Farina, from clinical practice. This measure was adopted pending clarification of their position in the investigation.

Without stable leadership and a reduced staff, the department now finds itself having to start almost from scratch.

The search for specialists

In an attempt to rebuild the team, Monaldi management has initiated several steps. On February 27, with a certified email signed by general manager Anna Iervolino, the company requested the CV of Mario Fittipaldi, a cardiac surgeon from Salerno who had previously worked at the facility for six months.

The required documentation—surgeries performed as primary care physician, type of procedures, and clinical outcomes—was requested if the physician wished to return to the pediatric cardiac surgery and congenital heart disease unit.

Fittipaldi currently works at a specialist hospital in London, after more than ten years of international experience gained in England, Spain and New Zealand.

The crux of the previous assignments

The surgeon responded to the request with his own certified email, recalling however some internal issues that had led to his removal from the facility.

In the communication, Fittipaldi emphasizes that, following the mobility and termination of service of some managers in the same operational unit, a new competition for pediatric cardiac surgery had been announced without an internal consultation, even though he was already employed on a permanent basis.

Subsequently, with the closure of the single departmental structure, the doctor was assigned to adult cardiac surgery. A decision that prompted him to take a leave of absence to continue practicing pediatric surgery in other facilities.

Uphill restart

For Monaldi, the upcoming phase therefore appears complex. On the one hand, there's the need to rebuild patient trust, shaken by a situation that has resonated widely among the public. On the other, there's the urgent need to strengthen staffing, especially in a highly specialized field like pediatric cardiac surgery.

The company is attempting to move forward on several fronts: publishing mobility notices, holding new competitions, and establishing informal contacts with surgeons who have left Naples over the years to work in other regions or abroad.

The hope is to quickly restore the department to full capacity. But, after the shock of the past few weeks, the road to normalization still appears long.