The coroner Julie Langlois presented her report on the death of Hugo St-Onge, Thursday, in Quebec.
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July 30, 2020 11h27
Updated at 17: 03
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Death of a young paramedic in Lévis: a preventable death and still a lack of ambulances
Isabelle Mathieu
The Sun
The death of the young paramedic Hugo St-Onge, 24 years, in December 2017 was one death possibly preventable, concludes the coroner’s Me Julie Langlois, which recommends, in particular, to add numbers to the paramedics on the territory of Lévis. The young man in cardio-respiratory arrest waited for the ambulance for 21 minutes.
“For me, it is clear that the lack of effective ambulance has played an important role in the record of Mr. St-Onge,” says the coroner Langlois. He who saved lives, was not able to be saved…”
On December 27, 2017, Hugo St-Onge will join his girlfriend at home, in Lévis, in the quartier St-Jean-Chrysostome. Shortly after being put to bed, the young man begins to convulse. His breath becomes irregular and choppy. His girlfriend immediately contact the emergency services. It is 00h31. The young woman finds out during the call that her lover stops breathing. She began cpr.
Hugo St-Onge
The first responders, the firefighters, arriving at 00h48 and take over. The paramedics, from de Bellechasse, will be on-site at 00h52, 21 minutes after the 911 call.
Cpr continued in the ambulance until the CHUL. Still in respiratory arrest, the young man will be intubated. His death is recorded in 2 hours.
Slight heart problem
In April 2016, Hugo St-Onge has presented symptoms of syncope. He underwent an electrocardiogram.
The doctors of Saint Francis of Assisi have found a small heart murmur, and a slight dysfunction of a heart valve which does not close completely.
He saw a cardiologist in December 2016. A follow-up appointment was scheduled in 2019. We reassure him by recommending to always be well hydrated.
According to his relatives, the young ambulance has never had any other symptoms prior to the night of his death.
In his report, the coroner Julie Langlois asks the question if all the examinations required to properly assess the condition of the young man had been prescribed. It recommends that the CHU de Québec to review the quality of care provided.
A single ambulance more
On December 27, 2017, as every night in this period, only three ambulances covered the territory lévisien. They were all already occupied, either the hospital or en route to the Hôtel-Dieu de Lévis.
Since march 2018, the equivalent of a single ambulance has been added by the ministry of Health. Is this enough? “To ask the question is to answer it, replied the coroner Langlois. There is still clearly a lack of workforce.”
“For me, it is clear that the lack of effective ambulance has played an important role in the record of Mr. St-Onge. He who saved lives, was not able to be saved… ”
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Me Julie Langlois, coroner
The coroner recommended that the ministry of Health and the CISSS Chaudière-Appalaches to examine the issue of staffing paramedics on the territory of Lévis and to assess the relevance of reviewing the criteria for the allocation of these numbers.
Two and a half years after the loss of their son Hugo, Johanne Lapointe and Bruno St-Onge live the drama a little more calmly. “But it remains that it is a total failure, a result of defaults, see Ms. Lapointe. It is difficult to conceive that one calls 9-1-1 for an emergency situation and that it takes five minutes before it deploys the first respondents. And after, when you see the search of an ambulance to the left and to the right and all the time… You do not accept it for your loved ones or anyone.”
Johanne Lapointe and Bruno St-Onge were present for the unveiling of the report on the death of their son.
Sun, Yan Doublet
Maxime Laviolette, general manager for Dessercom, is still very moved when he thinks of his former employee, a young paramedic dedicated and committed.
“We need to stop accepting the status quo, says Mr. Laviolette. It is necessary to stop to say, “it’s not serious”. What happened in 2017 is serious.”
And time of 20 minutes like the one lived by the young paramedic, there are still in Lévis, assured Mr. Laviolette.
A month before his death, Hugo St-Onge had signed, with his colleagues, an opinion letter denouncing the under-staffed ambulance and its potential consequences can be very serious for the population.
Two million $ more
The mayor of Lévis, Gilles Lehouillier is also found that its citizens have been waiting for too long for an ambulance service to meet the needs. “If we want to ensure the safety of our population, we no longer have the choice”, considers the mayor of Lévis.
With its 150 000 inhabitants, Levis is now the most populous as Saguenay. Levis has five ambulances less than Saguenay, every day.
According to the information sent to the mayor of Lévis, it would cost about $ 2 million more per year to the ministry of Health to increase by 25% the servicing ambulance to Lévis and go to a dozen ambulances in service.
Maxime Laviolette, general manager for Dessercom
In addition to increasing the number of ambulances in Levis, it is also necessary to ensure that the company Dessercom is finally integrated with the dispatch system computer-aided instruction, a tool that saves precious minutes in locating vehicles on the territory. “We are just waiting to be able to be connected, it just takes the commitment of the authorities,” says Maxime Laviolette of Dessercom.
The ministry of Health and its minister have assured on Thursday that they had taken knowledge of the report and take the necessary actions.
“We take note of the report and we will do a follow-up to recommendations,” says Marjaurie Side-Boileau, press attaché to the minister of Health and former member of parliament for Lévis, Christian Dubé.
