Wrocław. The paramedics performed a “gynecological examination” on the patient. The case is being investigated by the prosecutor's office

The case is being investigated by the Wrocław Krzyki District Prosecutor's Office. As Karolina Stocka-Mycek, spokeswoman for the District Prosecutor's Office in Wrocław, said in an interview with TVN24, the emergency service to which one of the patients complained was notified about the possibility of a crime committed by the paramedics. It's about a woman who needed help from the Wrocław ambulance service in November 2024.

– She was then supposed to be examined gynecologically by paramedics – informs prosecutor Stocka-Mycek. He emphasizes that the investigators' activities are at an early stage.

The spokeswoman of the Wrocław district prosecutor's office said that an internal audit was initiated in connection with the incident at the Emergency Medical Service in Wrocław. – The prosecutor from the Wrocław Krzyki District Prosecutor's Office asked the management of the ambulance service to provide documentation and inspection results. It has not yet been submitted to the prosecutor's office – added Stocka-Mycek.

The Onet portal was the first to report on this matter last week. Journalists say that it came to light after a patient and her partner approached the Wrocław ambulance service and demanded an explanation of the actions taken by the paramedics.

In this matter, the TVN24 editorial team contacted Zbigniew Młądzki, director of the Emergency Medical Service in Wrocław. On Tuesday, January 7, he issued a statement on this matter. We read in it that in December 2024, the emergency service conducted an investigation in connection with a signal from one of the patients. In the course of the proceedings, the emergency service obtained an opinion from a provincial consultant in the field of emergency medicine regarding the paramedic's qualifications to perform gynecological examinations.

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“The obtained opinion shows that in accordance with the Regulation of the Minister of Health of June 22, 2023 on medical rescue activities and health services other than medical emergency activities that may be provided by a paramedic, a paramedic cannot perform a gynecological examination (with except for a pregnant woman) independently or at the request of a doctor. The procedure that can be performed by a gynecological and obstetric paramedic is to admit delivery,” we read in the statement.

After receiving the opinion, the ambulance service notified the prosecutor's office. But this – as the director emphasizes in the statement – does not end the emergency service's activities. Currently, as Director Młązki wrote, the medical documentation provided by paramedics is being verified and analyzed. It concerns “the scope of patient management and performance of gynecological procedures in terms of compliance with legal regulations.”

“Due to the notification sent to the prosecutor's office, at the current stage of the proceedings, the Wrocław Emergency Medical Service does not provide any further information on the case in question,” the director concludes in the statement.

While collecting materials for this article, we talked to several experienced paramedics. One of them indicates that a paramedic must take all actions necessary to save a life. – Every action must have a justification. Some time ago I was taking a woman to the ambulance who was bleeding heavily. To determine that the bleeding was in the genital tract, it was enough to look at the appearance of the blood. I have been working in the emergency room for 17 years and have never had a situation where I had to perform any gynecological examination – says our interlocutor.

As he points out, the issue related to rectal examinations is slightly different. – Thanks to it, we know whether there is bleeding in the lower part of the digestive system. We are able to take appropriate actions necessary to save the patient's life, he noted.

Another of our interlocutors says that the situation in Wrocław is “extremely disturbing.” – Social trust is very fragile. One irresponsible person can harm not only patients, but also the entire environment. I hope that the story will be checked very carefully, he emphasized.