The Parliamentary Ombudsman welcomes the definitive judgement of the Court of Appeal delivered on 30 September 2016, authorising and ordering the Director of the Public Registry to register the birth of a child born at sea.

Her mother, of Somali origin, gave birth on a boat carrying 70 other irregular immigrants that eventually sank.  The mother and child were rescued by the Armed Forces of Malta and transferred on a vessel flying the Russian flag the ‘Yelena Shatrova’.  Since the rescued immigrants could not be transferred onto the vessel of the Armed Forces of Malta because of inclement weather the Russian vessel was authorised to enter port in Malta where the mother and child landed and were given subsidiary humanitarian protection.

The Ombudsman notes the declaration of the First Hall of the Civil Court in the appealed judgement that the child had the fundamental right to be registered and to have a nationality and that this right had to be respected.  He also noted that the law as it stands, is unclear and that the amendments purposely made to provide for such eventualities did not adequately cover all cases including those of a child born in such circumstances similar to those of applicant.

The Court of Appeal in its judgement declared that it was of the opinion that the legislator did not intend to exclude the registration of children born at sea and brought to Malta in circumstances similar to that of appellant.  The Ombudsman therefore recommends that the law is revisited and clarified to provide for the registration by the Director of the Public Registry of the birth of all stateless children born at sea who are brought to Malta as their first port of call.  Adequate safeguards should be made to ensure that such exceptional registration is not abused of by undeserving applicants.

La Administración ha dado luz verde a un protocolo para que el personal sanitario en formación respete el derecho a la intimidad de los pacientes hospitalarios, como pidió el Defensor del Pueblo.

Es habitual la presencia en centros sanitarios de estudiantes y residentes que, junto al médico responsable de la atención, examinan y reconocen a pacientes, sin el previo consentimiento de éstos.

El Defensor del Pueblo solicita que se establezcan unos criterios de actuación comunes de respeto al derecho a la intimidad y a la confidencialidad de los datos del paciente, y para que se creen en los estudiantes y residentes hábitos de conducta acordes con estos derechos.

Los alumnos en formación deberán ir identificados para que los pacientes sepan quien está presente en su proceso asistencial. También será necesario pedir un consentimiento informado para que personal en formación esté presente y tome parte en consultas médicas. El protocolo también establece unos controles de acceso más rigurosos a los historiales clínicos por parte de los estudiantes.

Tras ser publicado en el BOE, el protocolo se entregará al personal en formación de todos los hospitales del sistema Nacional de Salud.