Close X
Sunday, September 22, 2024
ADVT 
National

Baby Girl Died: Manitoba Judge Says Northern Health Care 'Challenging'

The Canadian Press, 22 Dec, 2015 12:25 PM
    WINNIPEG — A judge says an overloaded and outdated medical system — not uncommon in northern communities — failed a Manitoba infant girl who died two months after she was born.
     
    Drianna Ross died of an infection in November 2011 because information was not passed on from a remote nursing station to a hospital in Thompson, ineffective drugs were given and "the seriousness of her condition was not recognized in a timely way," Judge Don Slough wrote in an inquest report released Tuesday.
     
     
    "There is no doubt that the provision of health care in the north is challenging," he said in the report.
     
    "The co-operation between (health) agencies, in collaboration with First Nations communities, must expand in its scope, with the goal of ensuring that residents of some of Manitoba's most disadvantaged communities have access to the quality health care that is the right of all Canadians."
     
    The inquest was told that Drianna was born healthy in Thompson General Hospital and returned with her parents to God's Lake Narrows, a remote fly-in community of about 1,300 people.
     
    When she was two months old, her parents contacted the community's nursing station repeatedly over three days about their daughter's high fever.
     
    There is a doctor in the community on weekdays, but the inquest was told the physician's workload is very high, so Drianna was treated by an inexperienced nurse who had not learned protocols for infants with high fever.
     
    Eventually, the girl was flown to the Thompson hospital, diagnosed with pneumonia and placed on antibiotics.
     
    The inquest was told Drianna died from a bacterial infection called methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, a condition that would not be addressed by the antibiotics she was given.
     
    "It appears that information regarding Drianna Ross's treatment and high fever over the last few days while she was in God's Lake Narrows ... was not included in the material sent to Thompson General Hospital," Slough's report says.
     
    It also says the nurse who took care of Drianna in Thompson was inexperienced, lacked specialized pediatric training and felt "overwhelmed" with his workload the night Drianna arrived.
     
    The report points to problems Slough said are common in northern communities — overworked and inexperienced health-care professionals, outdated technology that forces doctors and nurses to rely on paper copies instead of electronic records, and an acceptance of MRSA and other infections as commonplace.
     
    "Social factors, such as crowded households, busy and cramped facilities (e.g. nursing stations) contribute to the prevalence and spread of MRSA," Slough wrote.
     
    "In my view, the acceptance of MRSA as a fact of life in northern communities cannot be tolerated."
     
    The report makes a long list of recommendations that include better training, updated equipment and a greater use of nurse practitioners, who have more training and authority than other nurses.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    8 Arrested During March In Downtown Montreal

    Montreal police say they arrested one woman and seven men on charges ranging from uttering death threats, assault with a weapon, obstructing police and intimidation.

    8 Arrested During March In Downtown Montreal

    Improving Public Access To Information Will Make Government Better: Justin Trudeau

    OTTAWA — Ensuring Canadians have access to federal information will mean more — and sometimes difficult — public scrutiny, but ultimately it will lead to better government, the prime minister says.

    Improving Public Access To Information Will Make Government Better: Justin Trudeau

    Dennis Oland Found Guilty Of Second-Degree Murder In Father's Death

    Dennis Oland Found Guilty Of Second-Degree Murder In Father's Death
    Oland began crying and saying, "Oh my God," after the verdict was read Saturday in a Saint John court. He also could be heard saying, "My children."

    Dennis Oland Found Guilty Of Second-Degree Murder In Father's Death

    Governor General Welcomes Latest Batch Of Syrian Refugees Arriving In Toronto

    Governor General Welcomes Latest Batch Of Syrian Refugees Arriving In Toronto
    The chartered plane from Beirut, carrying about 214 refugees, was the fourth flight organized by the government as part of its plan to bring 10,000 Syrian refugees to Canada by the end of the year.

    Governor General Welcomes Latest Batch Of Syrian Refugees Arriving In Toronto

    Air Canada Has Reached A Tentative Agreement With 7,500 Members Of IAMAW

    Air Canada Has Reached A Tentative Agreement With 7,500 Members Of IAMAW
    Airline says the 10-year agreement with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers covers 7,500 employees.

    Air Canada Has Reached A Tentative Agreement With 7,500 Members Of IAMAW

    BlackBerry CEO: Its a 'social responsibility' to vault privacy in some cases

    WATERLOO, Ont. — BlackBerry's chief executive John Chen says he stands by a controversial blog post he published earlier this week that outlines when he'd be willing to hand private customer information over to law enforcement.

    BlackBerry CEO: Its a 'social responsibility' to vault privacy in some cases