A 52-year-old man died after a long wait of almost two hours for the arrival of an ambulance in the Murcian locality of Mazarrón. The patient's family requested urgent assistance from the emergency service 112 at 12:31 PM, but had to make a second call at 1:24 PM upon noticing the delay. The man, who had respiratory difficulties, was eventually transferred to Santa Lucía Hospital in Cartagena, where he unfortunately died despite arriving alive.
The Superior Tribunal of Justice of Murcia has upheld the claim of the deceased's two sons and has resolved to compensate them with 78,000 euros after considering that the death was the result of an inexcusable delay in emergency assistance. The Murcian Health Service admitted its responsibility in the case, acknowledging that the time elapsed between the initial call and the home assistance far exceeded the quality standards.
According to Ignacio Martínez, the lawyer from the Patient Advocate Legal Services, there was a desperate waiting period while the ambulance made them wait. The family, concerned for the man's health, made multiple calls to emergency services and the Mazarrón health center in search of immediate assistance. Unfortunately, help arrived too late and the patient died after an agonizing wait.
The lack of efficient and rapid response to such a serious medical emergency generated outrage among the family and the community. After filing complaints and lawsuits, compensation was secured for the deceased's children, seeking to prevent such tragic and avoidable events from happening in the future.