|
Lawsuit expected in 6-8 weeks, says McCoy
Chris Clegg
for South Peace News
A class action lawsuit will be filed within the next 6-8 weeks arising from practices at the High Prairie Hospital which came to light in Oct. 27, 2008.
“I believe in this case,” St. Alberta lawyer Cam McCoy told a group of about 50 people at the Kapawe’no Hall in Grouard May 7. “I’m calling this the Sharing Needles Case.”
News of the practice of using a single syringe in two or more patients for intravenous medication at the hospital broke last October when Peace Country Health issued a news release. PCH urged everyone who had dental surgery from Jan. 1, 1990 to Oct. 2, 2008 and patients who had endoscopies from March 1, 2004 to Oct. 2, 2008 to get tests. As many as 2,700 people were urged to get tests.
The risk of infection is extremely low – a fact McCoy concedes and told people attending at the first meeting March 5 and May 7.
“Not every needle was tainted,” said McCoy, “but there was a sharing of needles. I have received word there are people who are infected and want to pursue some action.”
However, it will be difficult to prove actions at the hospital were the sole cause for infection.
McCoy says there are other issues.
“Many people might think if I don’t have infection I don’t have a claim.”
That is not the case. McCoy cited three main reasons to pursue a claim.
* the media knew before patients;
* after the story broke, the provincial government did not move quickly enough to solve the problem and alleviate peoples’ fears;
* patients had to wait for tests and test results.
“One moth, six weeks, two months, it wasn’t a quick enough process,” says McCoy. “Once the testing was done, it took so long to get the results. That’s a major concern.”
It leads to mental and emotional stress and a claim, says McCoy.
“The argument we’re going to make is the government had a duty to make sure testing is a necessity. A lot of you went through Christmas holidays (without results). I’ve been told Christmas was awful. Couples did not want to get intimate with each other.
“Yes, the risk is extremely small but the anxiety for two to three months is a problem. There is no valid reason people could not be tested. (The government failed) to offer timely testing and timely testing results.”
McCoy says he will also investigate whether or not the sharing of needles was occurring elsewhere.
“Why was this the only place of sharing needles and not Edmonton and Calgary? I want to know how much money was saved by putting people through this process.”
McCoy says major media are beginning to show interest in the story. The Edmonton Journal and TV stations are requesting interviews. With a growing list of over 200 people already interested in a lawsuit, McCoy says the numbers will only grow.
“Imagine where we’ll be in a couple months,” he says.
“Our claim is simple,” says McCoy. “We demand when the government screws up they have a responsibility to clean it up. I think we can all agree sharing needles in a hospital setting is unacceptable.”
McCoy expects to file a statement of claim in about 6-8 weeks.
“Right now we’re still getting names,” he says.
A news release issued by PCH in January claimed none of the three per cent of patients testing positive for infections can be traced to the tainted syringe scare. At the time, PCH said 92 per cent of the endoscopy and dental surgery patients identified for follow-up were contacted and offered blood testing. Of these, over two-thirds had their blood work completed.
A request form to make a claim can be downloaded from McCoy’s website at mccoylaw.ca.
Copyright © 1999-2009 South Peace News. All Rights Reserved.
No part may be reproduced without written permission.
View our Privacy Statement.
Send website suggestions to the Webmaster
|
