Heather's Death: Inquest Uncovers Hospital Care Gaps

0:00It's April 9th. I'm Corey with The Story. This is Calgary News Today, driven by AI. A coroner's inquest is digging into the death of 24-year-old Heather Wincherstein from sepsis at a St. Catherine's Hospital back on December 10, 2021. She hit the emergency room twice in two days, first for back pain after a fall, where Docs chalked it up partly to social issues and sent her home with. Tylenol. The next day, her dad called paramedics, but after hours waiting, she collapsed and couldn't be saved. Paramedics noted her vital signs, swinging wild on the way in. Heart rate jumping from 125 to 134 beats per minute, blood pressure all over, oxygen dipping to 84%. She got triaged at level 2, meaning she should have seen a doctor in 15 minutes max. Her family and community groups worry addiction bias and anti-indigenous racism, factored into her care, sparking big calls for accountability.

1:00The hospital was slammed during pandemic peaks, short three or four nurses that day, which execs admitted delayed assessments and treatments. Experts like Dr. Ron McMillan testified she never should have sat in the waiting room at that triage level, instead needing constant nurse checks for worsening signs like septic shock. The hospital leader said level 2 patients deserve 15 minute reach-ex, but no clear system tracked it. This inquest keeps unfolding with more testimony ahead, as health networks pledged to review findings on care gaps, indigenous health, and racism too, prevent repeats.