A Croatian patients’ rights group has called for Health Minister Irena Hrstić and the leadership of Zagreb’s Sveti Ivan Psychiatric Hospital to resign after the death of 32-year-old Kristian Josip Periš. The group also wants prosecutors to examine the roles of everyone who was present when staff restrained him.
Periš died on October 21 while receiving treatment in the hospital’s addiction ward. A Zagreb court ordered four medical technicians held in pretrial detention on suspicion of aggravated murder. The hospital subsequently dismissed them.
Police also interviewed five other hospital employees who were present, according to the prosecutor’s decision. The patients’ rights group has asked prosecutors to widen the investigation to establish what each person in the room did during the intervention.
When did health officials learn about the case?
The family’s lawyer, Leon Zrnić, said he requested a health inspection on October 23 and asked the hospital to preserve its video recordings. Hrstić said the health inspectorate received the complaint on October 26. According to the minister, hospital director Majda Grah emailed the ministry on November 7, and Hrstić personally learned of the case on November 9.
Hrstić said the inspectorate operates independently and that the hospital should have notified the ministry immediately. The patients’ rights group disputed her explanation, saying she should have been informed sooner.
Interior Minister Davor Božinović said police received the hospital footage more than two weeks after Periš died. He said the footage guided the investigation and led to the arrests. Hrstić also said staff had failed to follow the protocol for restraining a patient. The criminal investigation and the review of the hospital’s handling of the case are examining how staff acted and how the institution responded afterward.
