ER wasn't prepared to handle quadriplegic Quebec man, staff testifies at coroner's inquiry

Staff at a infirmary successful Saint-Jérôme, Que., accidental the exigency country was not prepared to handle a diligent similar Normand Meunier, a quadriplegic antheral who developed a terrible bedsore during his enactment successful January 2024.

Days into the coroner's enquiry into the decease of Meunier — who chose to prosecute aesculapian assistance successful dying arsenic a effect of the monolithic coiled — unit who treated him testified astir his attraction and the infirmary resources disposable astatine the time.

Meunier spent 4 days connected a stretcher successful the Saint-Jérôme Hospital's exigency country aft helium arrived with a respiratory virus.

His partner, Sylvie Brosseau, says without entree to a peculiar mattress, Meunier developed a large unit sore connected his buttocks that yet worsened and stretched down to his bony and muscle. It made his betterment and prognosis bleak.

Many of the inquiry's witnesses — erstwhile and existent infirmary staff — saw Meunier lone erstwhile connected their shift, sometimes for conscionable a fewer minutes.

Hospital missing equipment, dealing with unit shortage

Nurses testified that they inquired astir a peculiar unit mattress for Meunier that would assistance forestall bedsores, but said they ne'er saw the mattress arrive.

Some said the exigency country astatine the clip was overcrowded and understaffed and was operating astatine much than 150 per cent capableness with astir shifts abbreviated 3 oregon 4 nurses.

Stéphanie Arruda-Tavares, who was a caregiver astatine the clip of Meunier's infirmary stay, says it was reasonably uncommon that she had patients with bedsores. In her memory, determination was bedsore grooming available, but it was not mandatory astatine the hospital.

She said the ER was not equipped to person a diligent similar Meunier due to the fact that of the lack of therapeutic mattresses and fewer bariatric mattresses — utilized for plus-sized patients.

Other nurses who testified said the infirmary was missing worldly and equipment, adjacent pillows connected 1 occasion. Some mentioned that patients were waiting excessively agelong to beryllium seen owed to the staffing shortage.

'You're inactive here?' nurse recalls asking Meunier

Marion Lenoble, a caregiver who worked successful the exigency department, says she saw the request for a therapeutic mattress and enactment guardant the request.

She said she had to pass to the nighttime adjunct caput caregiver who would transportation the petition to the caput caregiver during the day, who would past marque the request. Lenoble says the adjacent night, she was amazed to spot Meunier inactive successful the exigency room.

She remembered asking, "you're inactive here?"

Meunier's record was besides complex, testified Dr. Pierre-Olivier Tremblay, an ER doc astatine the Saint-Jérôme Hospital. He said Meunier had galore comorbidities including hypertension, diabetes and bosom problems. He was besides morbidly obese and quadriplegic.

Tremblay testified that Meunier didn't look to beryllium suffering physically, but alternatively psychologically.

He said helium asked a caregiver to look into getting a peculiar mattress, saying "it was a justified request."

Patrick Martin-Ménard, the lawyer representing Meunier's partner, says the concern raises a fig of questions. 

"Right now, we person much questions than we person answers," helium said. "Not lone with respect to resources, but much broadly with respect to the prime and information of attraction astatine this infirmary and successful the health-care strategy much broadly."

He says they're hoping to formulate a "full representation of what happened."

The time earlier his death, Meunier spoke to Radio-Canada and said helium preferred putting an extremity to his carnal and intelligence suffering by opting for a medically assisted death. Meunier died connected March 29, 2024.

On Monday, Brosseau, his partner, was affectional describing however Meunier's past 2 weeks were horrific. She noted that she hopes his communicative volition alteration things moving forward.

More infirmary unit are acceptable to attest adjacent week, erstwhile the enquiry volition besides perceive from Brosseau.