{"id":310626,"date":"2024-04-21T11:42:02","date_gmt":"2024-04-21T16:42:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=310626"},"modified":"2024-04-19T16:25:01","modified_gmt":"2024-04-19T21:25:01","slug":"quadriplegic-man-assisted-dying-negligence-bedsore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/quadriplegic-man-assisted-dying-negligence-bedsore\/","title":{"rendered":"Quadriplegic man sought assisted dying after negligence led to severe bedsore"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A quadriplegic man who was checked into a Canadian hospital for a respiratory virus ended up dying through the country’s Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) program after he was left on a stretcher for so long that he developed a severe bedsore.<\/p>\n

Normand Meunier was checked into St-J\u00e9r\u00f4me Hospital in Quebec; a 2022 spinal cord injury had left his arms and legs paralyzed, and \u2014 according to CBC News<\/a> \u2014 he was left on a stretcher in the emergency room for four days without being moved or given access to a special mattress as needed. This led to a pressure bedsore on his buttocks so severe that bone and muscle were visible.<\/p>\n

Sylvie Brosseau, his partner, told Radio Canada<\/a> that hospital staff are always informed about his needs, which were ignored in this instance. “Every time we return to the hospital, it is my duty to warn them that Normand is quadriplegic and that he needs an alternative pressure mattress,” she said. The mattress in question allows the pressure to be moved specifically to prevent the formation of any bedsores.<\/p>\n