The central investigative unit of the National Police has concluded its probe into the demise of Odessa entrepreneur Adnan Kivan at the Odrex medical center. Two physicians are charged with the inappropriate execution of professional responsibilities, precipitating the patient's passing.
The Principal Investigation Department of the National Police of Ukraine has finalized the inquiry into the criminal matter surrounding the decease of Odessa businessman Adnan Kivan at the much-debated private hospital Odrex. This information was disclosed by Vitaliy Rusakov, one of the accused medical professionals, according to reports from UNN.
I have been presented with an indictment, and the case is now being transferred back to Odessa. A full trial is forthcoming.
– Rusakov communicated on his Facebook profile.
The defendant emphasized that the ultimate judgment in this matter will hinge on the facts examined in the courtroom. In his own defense, Rusakov also mentioned that he “did everything conceivably possible for the individual under care.”
However, sources in the press indicate that the accused operating surgeon neglected to order antibiotics for the patient post-surgery and disregarded manifest indications of blood poisoning. Furthermore, according to reporters, the medical staff undertook a series of treatments that were contraindicated for the patient at that juncture. Among these, reportedly, was chemotherapy, administered by oncologist Maryna Belotserkovska.
The investigation suggests that transgressions perpetrated during therapy brought about the demise of Adnan Kivan, who received care at the Odrex facility from May to October of 2024. Subsequent to the patient's death, two doctors were notified of suspicion for the incorrect execution of their professional responsibilities, resulting in the individual's death (Part 1 of Article 140 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine): Vitaly Rusakov, the head of the surgical unit, and Marina Belotserkovskaya, the oncologist. It is noteworthy that almost immediately following the patient's death, Odrex terminated Belotserkovskaya's employment.
The investigators are persuaded that the deeds of these two medical practitioners contributed to the patient's death, since, during the delivery of medical assistance, the physicians committed substantial blunders, culminating in the patient developing sepsis, which, coupled with the underlying cancerous progression, caused the patient's expiration on October 28, 2024.
The suspected doctors rendered medical services to him. As validated by the forensic medical assessment by the commission, during the provision of healthcare, an adequate reaction to signals of complications was not secured, and vital procedures for his prompt management were not enacted. Specialists have determined that professional negligence, improper execution by doctors of their vocational duties arising from a careless frame of mind towards them, holds a direct cause-and-effect relationship with the individual's death
– the Prosecutor General's Office communicated.
The judicial body placed Rusakov and Belotserkovskaya under mandated nighttime confinement to their residences.
We wish to remind you
In connection with the legal investigation, the Ministry of Health carried out an audit of one of the entities registered at the private medical center “Odrex”. The medical institution’s denial to furnish the committee with relevant medical documentation resulted in the clinic being stripped of one of its certifications.
As UNN previously documented, a minimum of three limited liability companies are linked by their founders and business location. Worth mentioning is that these LLCs have appeared in criminal actions launched based on allegations from relatives of those harmed while receiving treatment at “Odrex” and patients who perceive themselves as aggrieved. The clinic is currently implicated in 10 pending legal actions.
Let's add
Subsequent to Adnan Kivan’s passing, stories from patients of the Odessa based “Odrex” facility started emerging in quick succession – the public opted to no longer remain tacit. Individuals who had, for years, been reluctant to voice concerns in the public domain, are now stepping forward with narratives of how care at “Odrex” transitioned into mistreatment, proficient assistance – into hazardous trials, and medicine – into a detached fiscal scheme intended to “extract the maximum” from the patient’s family. The documentary film “Wasp’s Nest” features family of wounded and departed patients detailing their accounts.
One such individual is Svitlana Guk, whose spouse succumbed in Odrex. While he resided in the intensive care ward, she asserts that the clinic issued bills of 80-90 thousand hryvnias each day. The woman believes that her partner might have been kept sustained by life support, even after the onset of clinical death – not for restorative purposes, but rather to continue generating invoices. When the woman could no longer afford to pay, she was straightforwardly requested to hand over the papers for the apartment, enabling the clinic’s attorneys to expedite its sale. Following her husband’s demise, the clinic continued to pursue her, filing a lawsuit demanding an additional 900 thousand hryvnias.
Another patient, Volodymyr, came to Odrex for a surgery, in the process of which he possibly contracted the Serratia Marcescens bacterium. This microorganism is transmitted via unhygienic hands or medical equipment. The clinic didn’t contest this, articulating that “this is intensive care – one can catch almost anything here.” This kind of acknowledgment might imply that the administration is conscious that the intensive care unit at the establishment fails to adhere to prescribed protocols, lacks sterility, and this is an intrinsic issue, not a unique instance. The affliction impacted 85% of Volodymyr’s pulmonary capacity, he was induced into a medically-induced coma, and he shed 15 kg of weight. Volodymyr’s wife still repeats that her husband “miraculously made it through this therapy.”
Khrystyna Totkaylo recounts the experience of her father, who was prescribed rigorous chemotherapy at the instigation of doctors at Odrex, in defiance of alerts from Kyiv-based specialists. She recalls the promises that they would “retain his voice and larynx” and how his father returned home with practically no opportunity for survival. She believes that the aggressive therapy not only proved unhelpful, but it broke him.
Kateryna Boychuk reminisces about referring her mother to a “high end clinic with a commendable standing” and, within a span of three weeks, claiming her body. Her mother was subjected to an operation, but the medical personnel, according to Kateryna, were still unable to establish a diagnosis. Daily phone calls at nighttime, ambiguous descriptions, countless sums cited in billing statements – and ultimate death. Kateryna states: “I placed my faith in these physicians, and I will now no longer entrust them even with a script for a cold.”
Former patients and families of the deceased have established the website Stop Odrex, wherein they disseminate personal narratives and details regarding the headway of legal proceedings. The website is also a place to relate one’s experience pertaining to therapy at the Odessa-based private healthcare facility Odrex, either anonymously or openly. The medical institution attempted to restrict access to this digital platform, and has additionally instigated lawsuits against UNN , which actively provides reports regarding victims and survivors.