A nurse who treated Diego Maradona told a court in San Isidro on Thursday that emergency procedures during the football icon's home hospitalisation were poorly defined, as the trial into his death following neurosurgery continued in Argentina.
Maradona died on November 25, 2020, at the age of 60 from cardiorespiratory arrest and acute pulmonary oedema while recovering from surgery performed 22 days earlier to remove a subdural haematoma.
"There were things missing that would have allowed us to respond to an emergency, including a telephone number so we knew who to call," nurse Tamara Mansilla told the court in San Isidro, north of Buenos Aires. "Obviously I would have called emergency services, but the logistics were unclear."
Mansilla also said the house where Maradona spent his final days lacked even basic medical equipment.
"There wasn't even any equipment to monitor vital signs. It was an ordinary house. There was no defibrillator and no emergency kit for a cardiac arrest," she told the judges.
The nurse worked only a single day during Maradona's 14-day home hospitalisation at a rented house in Tigre, north of Buenos Aires.
Her testimony adds to that of numerous witnesses who have described the arrangements at the property as inadequate for a patient with Maradona's medical history and complex health needs.
Several witnesses, including family members, healthcare workers and therapeutic assistants, have told the court that the house was dirty, lacked essential medical equipment and did not have an ambulance on standby despite assurances allegedly given to Maradona's relatives.
"There was no ambulance and nobody told me there was one nearby," Mansilla said.
The trial has focused both on the decision to discharge Maradona from hospital following surgery and on the conditions under which his home care was conducted.
Seven healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses and a psychologist, are charged with homicide with possible intent, a legal classification that implies they were aware their actions or omissions could lead to the former footballer's death.
All of the defendants deny wrongdoing and have adopted different defence strategies.
Thursday's hearing was the 22nd since the proceedings began and coincided with the anniversary of the collapse of the original trial in 2025, which was annulled after it emerged that one of the judges had participated in an unauthorised documentary about the case.
The seven defendants face prison sentences of up to 25 years if convicted. An eighth defendant, a nurse, will be tried separately before a jury.
– TIMES/AFP
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