Latest news with #medicalassistanceindying
National Post
12 hours ago
- Health
- National Post
Liberals show no signs of limiting MAID despite 'extremely concerned' UN report
OTTAWA — Ottawa is giving no sign that it intends to amend existing legislation on medical assistance in dying — something a UN committee called for earlier this spring. Article content The federal minister responsible for disabilities spoke at a hearing of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities last week, about two months after the committee called on Canada to repeal the 2021 law that expanded eligibility for assisted dying to those whose deaths were not reasonably foreseeable. Article content Article content Article content Jobs and Families Minister Patty Hajdu gave a speech at the UN last Tuesday to mark 15 years since Canada ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Article content Article content 'It's about, for me, making relationships in this space and making sure that I have a really strong connection with the community, which I think is really important to be a good minister,' she said in an interview after the speech. The report said the committee is 'extremely concerned' about Canada's policy on track 2 medical assistance in dying. Article content '(T)he concept of 'choice' creates a false dichotomy, setting up the premise that if persons with disabilities are suffering, it is valid for (Canada) to enable their death without providing safeguards that guarantee the provision of support,' the report said. Article content In a written statement, a spokesperson for Hajdu said the government thanks the committee for its report. Article content Article content 'MAID is a deeply personal choice. We will make sure that the rights of persons with disabilities are upheld and protected,' said Jennifer Kozelj. Article content Article content Disability rights groups in Canada have argued the law singles out people with disabilities who are suffering because they're unable to access proper support. Article content Last September, Inclusion Canada was among a group of organizations that filed a Charter of Rights challenge against what's known as track 2 MAID. Article content 'It was crystal clear — the United Nations said they need to repeal track 2 medical assistance in dying,' she said. Article content Garnett Genuis, the Conservative employment critic, said he came away from the UN event worried about Canada's international reputation being harmed by what he called Ottawa's 'failures to uphold our obligations to protect the rights of people with living with disabilities.'
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Partner of Quebec man who received MAID after bedsores says hospital ignored her
MONTREAL — Sylvie Brosseau said she and her partner Normand Meunier dreamed of buying an adapted camper where, despite his quadriplegia, they could indulge their shared love of the outdoors, and spend time with their children and grandchildren. All that changed after Meunier was left on a stretcher at a hospital north of Montreal for 96 hours and developed a severe pressure sore that never healed, Brosseau said Thursday outside the Montreal courtroom where a coroner is holding hearings into Meunier's death. Meunier, who was 66, requested medical assistance in dying two months after developing the sore and died March 29, 2024. "Despite his quadriplegia, he still had plans he wished to realize, he had lofty goals," Brosseau said. "But because of the incurable bedsore that appeared at the hospital, he had no more perspective on life." Brosseau says she repeatedly asked hospital staff to give Meunier a special therapeutic mattress that prevents sores, but she says she felt ignored. "They cared very little about me," she said prior to her testimony at the coroner's inquest. She brought photos of the couple's life together, including one showing Meunier grinning broadly while surrounded by grandchildren. She said she wanted people to remember that side of him, and not only for graphic photos of the gaping wound on his buttock that one nurse would describe as the biggest she'd ever seen. Coroner Dave Kimpton is presiding over the investigation into Meunier's death. The inquest, which began May 5, is also hearing from police, medical personnel, and experts who will offer recommendations. In her testimony Thursday afternoon, Brosseau said bedsores were 'always a worry' because Meunier had developed them during previous hospital stays. She testified that her partner had been taken to St-Jérôme hospital on Jan. 18, 2024, with respiratory issues. She said she had told the medical staff that he was prone to sores and advised them of the equipment he needed, including a therapeutic mattress. However, she said Meunier remained on a stretcher for four days before he was taken to intensive care. After a two-day stay in intensive care, he was transferred to another unit on Jan. 26, where Brosseau said the proper equipment again wasn't provided. When she questioned one of his doctors about a mattress, she was told, "you are lucky, I saved his life," she testified. He told her that securing a therapeutic mattress would be handled by others. "For him, it was part of the decor," she said of the mattress. Meunier was let out of hospital on Jan. 29. The next day, the medical staff who came to treat him at home saw the sore and was shocked, she said. Brosseau became tearful when she described seeing the wound on Feb. 5, after her husband's caretakers convinced the family Meunier needed to return to hospital. "I never saw something like that," she said. "It's unimaginable.' Brosseau said that throughout her husband's multiple hospital stays, she continually had to fight for him to get the supplies he needed, including mattresses, sheets and bandages adapted to his needs. Meunier requested medical assistance in dying in early March, after his condition had continued to decline. He died on March 29, surrounded by family and with his chosen music playing. "He left how he wanted," she said. At the conclusion of her testimony, Kimpton told Brosseau he was "shaken" by her testimony, and praised her dedication to her partner. "He was lucky to have a warrior at his side," the coroner told her. Brosseau's lawyer, Patrick Martin-Ménard, said outside the courtroom that Meunier's story shows that bedsores, and the care of those susceptible to them, remain a "blind spot" in the health system. "What we saw throughout this inquest is that throughout Mr. Meunier's stay, there was very little awareness on the part of the professionals who should have been trained to be able to monitor this situation," he said. Martin-Ménard said the testimony from hospital staff showed "little introspection" or willingness to take responsibility for what happened to Meunier. He said he hoped the inquest results in a stronger system that will proactively identify and address the needs of people at risk of bedsores at every step of their journey through the health network. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 15, 2025. Morgan Lowrie, The Canadian Press
CBC
15-05-2025
- Health
- CBC
'Nobody was reacting,' says partner of man who pursued assisted death due to ER bedsore
Carrying an envelope full of photos of her partner, Sylvie Brosseau's voice cracked as she shuffled through the stack — revealing a photo of Normand Meunier in a golf cart with their grandchildren. "We were always outside," she said of Meunier. "Despite him being quadriplegic, he had many projects … he had goals." But when he developed an "incurable" bedsore at the hospital, she says her partner "no longer had an interest in life." Meunier spent four days on a stretcher in the Saint-Jérôme Hospital's emergency room without access to a specialized mattress in January 2024, when he arrived with a respiratory virus. He developed a severe bedsore during his stay and chose to pursue medical assistance in dying as a result of the massive wound, which eventually stretched down to his muscle and bone. As horrific as the sore became, Brosseau says it's important to also remember that behind the bedsore "is a person, and me, I'm bringing photos of the person." The day before his death, Meunier spoke to Radio-Canada and said he preferred putting an end to his physical and psychological suffering by opting for a medically assisted death. His story made headlines across the province and resulted in Quebec's chief coroner ordering a public inquiry into his death. Over a week into the inquiry, which has heard from nurses, doctors and staff from the hospital, Brosseau testified that the bedsore her partner developed after spending 96 hours on a hospital stretcher was "unimaginable." On Thursday, she explained that she cared for her husband around the clock after he became paralyzed in 2022. Although they regularly dealt with his bedsores, she struggled to describe the deep, black pressure wound on her husband that developed in February. "I have never seen anything like this," said Brosseau, breaking down. Last week, Brosseau testified briefly after the coroner received a request to lift the publication ban on images of Meunier's bedsore. Brosseau said she had discussed the idea of photos being released with Meunier, who by the end, said he was OK with it if it would help people understand what happened to him. CBC News has viewed photos of the bedsore, including one image which shows Meunier lying on his side without clothes. A large, deep, black, open wound covering parts of his buttocks is visible. Concerns not taken seriously, Brosseau says On Thursday, Brosseau testified that her concerns over the developing bedsore in hospital were not taken seriously by some staff and that "nobody was reacting." During his hospitalization, she says she quelled her concerns because she is not a medical professional and chose to trust the medical staff's perspective about the seriousness of the sore. Describing the first few days of his January hospitalization before he was transferred to the intensive care unit, she described her repeated requests for a therapeutic mattress. She says nothing changed for days and staff didn't reposition him regularly every couple hours — a process recommended to prevent the deterioration of sores. Soon after returning home, the CLSC was alerted to his situation. The head of the home-care department for the CLSC testified last week that they arranged for Meunier to be readmitted for a treatment that can be painful, known as debridement. Before his hospitalization, Brosseau says they talked about the spring and thought about planning picnics or fishing trips. "His goal was to see his grandchildren grow up," she said. "That gave him hope" After his January hospitalization, she says he didn't want her to talk about his bedsore "but by my reaction, he could tell it was not good." "It was tough," said Brosseau, her voice cracking. She says she supported him in his decision to die on his terms. Although she says her family accepted it, she says some didn't completely understand. Speaking with reporters on Thursday, Brosseau says her goal is to bring awareness to her partner's reality and for better collaboration to prevent this from happening again. "Pressure sores don't just happen at home, they occur in hospital frequently. Care is not adapted," she said. Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Patrick Martin-Ménard, the lawyer representing Brosseau, says accountability in this case is lacking. "Pretty much what we've heard as a recurring theme throughout this investigation has been, 'it's not within my responsibilities,'" said Martin-Ménard. Coroner Kimpton is being assisted by attorneys Vanessa Nadeau and Pierre-Olivier Bilodeau as well as physician Dr. Marc Jalbert, who will act as an assessor. Throughout the hearings, over 30 witnesses will speak, including an investigator from the Sûreté du Québec Mascouche, nurses from the CLSC Lafontaine, family doctors and other specialists working at the Saint-Jérôme Hospital.
