Investigation launched after UZ Brussel sends away woman having miscarriage

A Belgian woman of Moroccan origin has filed a complaint after she not only was not helped at the emergency department of UZ Brussel when she had a miscarriage, but was also kicked out of the hospital and arrested by police.

The incident took place on the morning of 14 October. The pregnant woman reportedly arrived at the emergency department of UZ Brussel in Jette in severe pain, but was asked to speak Dutch.

When she said she only spoke French, the doctor on duty allegedly refused to examine her and sent her away with a painkiller. She said she was told that she was "not really pregnant".

After the woman demanded to be examined, officers from the Brussels-West police zone removed her from the building. Because the woman remained in front of the hospital, she was arrested a short time later and taken to the police station.

There, she said the officers snapped at her to be quiet and hurled insults at her, then forced her to clean up her own blood.

It was only when the shift changed that an incoming police officer noticed how badly she was doing and had her taken to the Clinique Sainte-Anne Saint-Rémi in Anderlecht, where she was examined and doctors determined that she had had a miscarriage.

The woman’s lawyer, Selma Benkhalifa of Progress Lawyers, is calling it a flagrant case of medical racism.

“Just asking her to speak Dutch is totally inappropriate,” she told Bruzz.

“Regardless of the fact that the hospital is located in Brussels, you would expect any emergency department to do their best to help people who don't speak the language.”

According to Benkhalifa, the woman was the victim of stereotypes about women from Africa and the Middle East.

“They’re less likely to be believed by medical staff, who think they’re exaggerating their complaints,” she said.

The lawyer said that the woman is now physically well, but has been deeply affected by the events and the loss of her unborn child.

“I have filed a complaint against the hospital with the equal opportunities centre Unia, and I am working on a complaint to the P Committee about the conduct of the police officers,” Benkhalifa said.

“It is absolutely unacceptable that the police refuse to help a woman who is bleeding heavily and, on top of that, humiliate her.”

UZ Brussel confirmed that the woman was in the emergency department in the early hours of 14 October and said an investigation had been launched into the matter.

“She had a bad experience there, which we regret,” spokesperson Karolien Deprez told Bruzz.

“We have received a complaint about the events and are investigating all aspects of what exactly happened at that time.”

Johan Berckmans, chief superintendent of the Brussels-West police zone, confirmed that officers from his zone went to the scene to assist the woman.

“According to the attending physician, the person in question was not in a condition that required urgent medical treatment,” Berckmans said.

“Another hospital had also previously determined that there was no urgency. Because the person concerned did not want to leave the hospital and was behaving uncooperatively, it was decided to proceed with administrative detention.

"During her confinement, she was repeatedly asked if a confidant or family member could be notified, which she refused each time."

Berckmans said that the woman continued to ask for medical assistance and an ambulance was called as a precaution and she was taken back to hospital.

“To date, we have not received any complaints regarding this incident,” said the police commissioner.

This is not the first time that the emergency department of UZ Brussel has come under scrutiny for its treatment of patients. In 2023, a heavily pregnant asylum-seeker was thrown out on to the street because she reportedly did not have health insurance, and at the end of July, a student from Anderlecht claimed he had been assaulted in a room at the hospital by officers from the West police zone.