The abrupt shutdown of the orthopedic trauma surgery unit at Bangui Community University Hospital has sparked outrage among patients and families.
The health ministry ordered the closure on February 3 following the sudden deaths of two patients, including the niece of a government minister.
An inquiry panel is now investigating the circumstances of the deaths while assessing the hospital’s service quality and operational challenges.
Frequent power cuts have disrupted medical procedures, worsening conditions at the already struggling hospital, according to Joseph Bindoum, head of the Central African Republic’s League for Human Rights.
Angry families and activists have condemned the closure, accusing authorities of abandoning patients in critical need of care.
During a protest on Tuesday, relatives of hospitalized patients demanded the immediate reopening of the trauma unit, one of the country’s few specialized medical facilities.
“The closure of this unit violates patients’ fundamental right to health,” Bindoum declared, echoing concerns from desperate families.
Irène Gassengue’s son has been lying in a hospital bed for a week with fractured limbs, awaiting surgery she has already paid for.
“I am furious because the minister of health unilaterally shut down the unit,” Gassengue said, fearing her son’s condition is rapidly deteriorating.
Among the deceased was Larissa Yagasso Nguianbga, niece of Energy Minister Arthur Bertrand Piri, a close ally of President Faustin Archange Touadéra.
A hospital doctor, speaking anonymously, said Nguianbga died after a power outage caused equipment failure during treatment.
With the unit closed, the government is now seeking help from the French medical charity Doctors Without Borders to treat critical patients.