Protection action in favor of rights to life and to health of children due to lack of timely and adequate surgical treatment. The State’s failure to guarantee sufficient budgetary allocations. Court order requiring full equipment of surgery room and creation of a dialogue table aimed at identifying and addressing current and future problems in hospital facilities.
As regards surgical interventions, a regular flow of interventions has been kept with some disruptions, but the goal of 7 surgery appointments per week has not been reached. The guarantee of gratuity has been complied with so far. Maintenance of professional and technical equipment, as well as the cost of materials and drugs, is being provided for through the creation of a trust by the Ministry of Health and Social Development. As regards hospital facilities, 8 new elevators were installed; the cardiology surgery room was renovated; the cardiology service was remodeled and equipped; new blood circulation equipment was purchased and installed (the old one had been damaged for 8 years), which has made it possible to conduct simple heart condition surgery; and computers were purchased to update listings of diagnosed children waiting for treatment. (Source: Programa Venezolano de Educación-Acción en Derechos Humanos, Provea)
Thanks to this case, a fruitful framework of negotiation with the State was created and used to address an extremely serious deficit in health services. Although not all agreements have been complied with, the case has made it possible to identify children with congenital heart disease as a vulnerable group requiring special measures by the State. A cardiological center is currently being built and may become a major national health facility specialized in congenital heart disease (cf. Provea’s analysis).
Petitioners: Programa Venezolano de Educación-Acción en Derechos Humanos (PROVEA) (http://www.derechos.org.ve/), Centros Comunitarios de Aprendizaje (Cecodap) (http://www.cecodap.org.ve/) and Acción Ciudadana contra el SIDA (ACCSI) (http://www.internet.ve/accsi/).