Naili Brisoley Rangel Navas, 24 years old, died following not receiving timely medical care, according to the Venezuelan Prison Observatory (OVP). She was confined in the female annex of the Fenix Penitentiary Community, in Lara state.
The death de Rangel Navas was registered on February 15 at the Antonio María Pineda Central Hospital, in the city of Barquisimeto, capital of Lara. The inmate would have entered the medical center on February 9, following reporting recurrent chest pain.
“The young woman complained of a pain on the chest that I gave him for a while. Sometimes it did not allow her to breathe well, but even so the days passed and medical assistance did not arrive, the pain became more intense, so on February 9 the director of the prison herself gave the order to take her to the hospital because the young man got worse,” the organization denounced in a press release.
Rangel Navas had a heart disease congenital and pulmonary hypertension; Her cellmates informed the OVP that they warned on several occasions that the woman needed immediate medical attention, but this request did not materialize quickly because there was no court order to transfer her to a health center.
A source told the OVP that the healthy conditions of the inmate were “extremely delicate” and required immediate medical attention.
“She came with a deficiency respiratory, he was immediately isolated and a PCR was done through swab to rule out COVID-19. This came out negative, the sputum test that had already been done in the prison was repeated, because they wanted to rule out whether it was tuberculosis and it was also negative.
The organization, which defends the human rights of persons deprived of liberty, pointed out that Rangel Navas’s lungs had been filled with liquidso they made an incision.
The young woman was a native of the state Merida and he was in this Lara penitentiary since July 16, 2021. He left an orphaned child.
few visits
The OVP pointed out that during her time in prison, this young woman received few visits because her closest family nucleus, including her mother and sister, are also deprived of liberty for the same reason as Rangel Navas, but they were transferred to the Los Andes Region Penitentiary Center (Cepra) from the police cell where they were held formerly confined.
“Family members who might help her were mens and it should be remembered that in this prison they only allow visits from women, ”explains the organization.
Rangel Navas’ illness had been detected since she was a child. According to her OVP, her life expectancy was not very encouraging; The doctors had warned her mother that she might live until adolescence, but thanks to the medical control that she had while she was free, she was able to overcome the warning made by the doctors and she led a normal life.
The OVP points out that once she was deprived of liberty might not continue with her specialized medical treatment and her health deteriorated, she had no control with a specialist and was transferred to a care center only when she became unbalanced. It was known that due to this situation, a benefit was repeatedly requested, but it was not approved.
no medical care
Her fellow inmates showed affected following the death of Rangel Navas, for which they took the opportunity to denounce to the OVP that medical assistance is almost nil in that penitentiary.
“Here for us attend in the infirmary or get kicked out we have to be dying, and that was what happened with our partner, if they had taken her out earlier, perhaps she would have been able to recover because she was a young girl. She should not die, ”one of the prisoners told the OVP.
They demand treatment and medicine
the recluses they asked to the authorities of the Ministry of Penitentiary Service to take into account their requests and not only act to carry out searches that are usually in violation of their rights, but also ask that the nursing area be equipped and function properly to serve the men and women there secluded.
They request that the treatments the sick arrive constantly, that treatment is improved and that the distribution of food and water is done regularly.
The body of the young woman was removed from the morgue from Barquisimeto and was transferred to the state of Mérida. As they alerted OVP, the expenses of the transfer and funeral were collected in foreign currency and all were paid by the relatives of Rangel Navas, who did not receive any help from the Ministry of Penitentiary Services.
Rangel Navas was part of the 210 women who are incarcerated in this penitentiary.
So far this year in the Phoenix prison they have registered From deaths related to health conditions, the first occurred on January 10, in the male population.
With information from the OVP.