Warning: This story incorporates delicate material. Discretion is suggested.
The spouse of a person who sought assisted demise following a disastrous emergency room keep in Quebec is accusing the healthcare system of negligence.
On Monday, Sylvie Brosseau spoke publicly as a coroner’s inquiry started into the demise of her longtime accomplice, Normand Meunier, who died final 12 months.
Normand Meunier is pictured together with his accomplice of 25 years, Sylvie Brosseau. A public inquiry is now inspecting the circumstances surrounding his demise.
Courtesy Sylvie Brosseau
Meunier, a 66-year-old quadriplegic, spent 4 days on a stretcher within the emergency room at Saint-Jérôme Hospital, northwest of Montreal, in January 2024.
He developed extreme strain sores throughout that keep — a complication that in the end led him to decide on medically-assisted demise.
“It was horrifying,” Brosseau stated via tears throughout the listening to. “The final two weeks of his life have been insufferable.”
In his opening assertion, coroner Dave Kimpton prolonged his condolences to Meunier’s household. He’ll hear from greater than 30 witnesses in an effort to grasp how Meunier’s situation deteriorated so drastically beneath hospital care.
Meunier had been paralyzed in 2022 after collapsing at residence and present process surgical procedure. A former truck driver, he was described by Brosseau as energetic and energetic earlier than his damage.
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Following his paralysis, he suffered recurring issues which led to repeated hospitalizations. “Every time, we needed to ask for the particular mattress which by no means arrived.” she stated.
Throughout his remaining ER go to, Brosseau stated she repeatedly requested hospital workers to offer the tailored mattress. Regardless of her pleas, it by no means got here. The sores on his buttocks have been so extreme that the bone and muscle have been uncovered.
“It was horrible. He had no buttocks. There was nothing left,” Brosseau stated.
She stated with months of extraordinarily painful restoration forward, Meunier determined to proceed with medically-assisted demise. He died on March 29, 2024.
“Failure to observe correct medical protocols will be the distinction between life and demise,” stated Brosseau’s lawyer, Patrick Martin-Menard.
The primary to testify included a Sûreté du Québec investigator, a nurse, and a physiotherapist who had cared for Meunier in his remaining months. A number of incapacity rights advocates additionally attended the listening to.
Meunier throughout a tenting journey. The couple had deliberate to journey and marry earlier than his well being took a flip.
Courtesy Sylvie Brosseau
“You aren’t imagined to die from a strain sore — it must be preventable,” stated Mark Beggs of MÉMO-Québec, an advocacy group for individuals with spinal twine accidents
Martin-Menard added, “I actually hope this prompts a broader reflection on how our healthcare system serves [certain vulnerable] sufferers.”
Witness testimony is scheduled to proceed via subsequent week, with 5 extra days set for June. Sylvie Brosseau is scheduled to take the stand on Could 15.
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