Health · Healthcare & Policy · 21 hrs ago
CNDH finds negligence in care of patient who died at Mexicali IMSS hospital
Mexico’s National Human Rights Commission found medical negligence in an older patient’s care at an IMSS hospital in Mexicali, Baja California.
The patient needed an urgent mitral valve replacement and a heart catheterization, but the operation was delayed and never carried out.
The commission said surgery should have taken place within three to five days of May 23, 2025, but was scheduled for July 4; the patient died on July 9.
A prolonged hospital stay and untreated infection contributed to the death, according to the commission, which also cited the missing catheterization and delayed surgery.
It found institutional responsibility because the hospital lacked resources for pre-surgery tests and said the patient should have been transferred or treated elsewhere.
The commission has asked the IMSS to compensate the family, provide psychological support, investigate staff responsibility and train hospital doctors in human rights.
Mexico’s National Human Rights Commission found negligence in the care of an older patient who died at an IMSS hospital in Mexicali, Baja California.
The CNDH said two doctors were negligent and the IMSS had institutional responsibility because the hospital lacked resources for preoperative tests.
The patient needed an urgent mitral valve replacement and cardiac catheterization, but surgery scheduled for July 4, 2025, was not performed.
The patient died on July 9 after a prolonged hospital stay and infectious complications.
The CNDH issued recommendation 33/2026, seeking compensation and support for the family and measures by the IMSS.
- Who
- An older patient treated at the IMSS General Hospital Zone No. 30 in Mexicali. The CNDH found two doctors negligent.
- What
- The CNDH found negligence and institutional responsibility in the patient’s care after an urgent heart operation was delayed and never performed.
- When
- The patient died on July 9, 2025. The CNDH issued recommendation 33/2026.
- Where
- IMSS General Hospital Zone No. 30 in Mexicali, Baja California.
- Why
- The CNDH said the delayed surgery, missing catheterization, untreated infection complications and lack of resources for preoperative tests contributed to the patient’s death.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The patient was hospitalized at the IMSS General Hospital Zone No. 30 and discharged.
The date after which the CNDH said the operation should have been performed within three to five days.
The patient was placed in isolation, and the family was not told why or for how long.
The heart operation was scheduled but was not performed.
The patient died after infectious complications during the prolonged hospital stay.
- Hospital
- IMSS General Hospital Zone No. 30, Mexicali, Baja California
- CNDH recommendation
- 33/2026
- Surgery scheduled
- July 4, 2025
- Date of death
- July 9, 2025
- Complaints filed
- July 6 and 7, 2025
What people are saying
las deficiencias hospitalarias no eximían al personal médico ni a las autoridades del IMSS de garantizar una atención adecuada y oportuna