N.B. mother believes coroner's inquest will offer useful recommendations two years after daughter's death by suicide inside Saint John hospital's psychiatric unit
Warning: This article contains disturbing details concerning suicide.
A New Brunswick mother believes a coroner’s inquest, examining how her daughter was able to take her own life within a hospital’s psychiatric unit, is proceeding toward useful recommendations.
Hillary Hooper died on Dec. 9, 2020, a week after a suicide attempt by hanging inside the Saint John Regional Hospital’s psychiatric unit in Saint John, N.B., on Dec. 2, 2020.
It happened nearly a month after Hooper was first admitted to Saint John Regional Hospital following a suicide attempt.
The inquest is expected to wrap up on Wednesday.
At the end of the inquest’s second day, Hooper’s mother told reporters she was learning information about the incident for the first time.
“So far, I think I’m hearing testimony from witnesses who are telling me the truth because they’re boots-on-the-ground,” said Patty Borthwick, outside the Saint John Law Courts on Tuesday afternoon.
“I’m hearing a lot of conflicting information from what I was given by the higher executives at Horizon [Health Network].”
The coroner inquest’s second day focused on Hooper’s behaviour on Dec. 2, and her interactions with medical staff on 4D North, the Saint John Regional Hospital’s psychiatric wing.
Tuesday’s testimony detailed how a hospital bed inside Hooper’s unit was used to block the room’s door on Dec. 2. This was discovered at 11:05 p.m. during a scheduled check on Hooper.
“I couldn’t open the door,” said Karen Wood, a registered nurse working in 4D North on the evening of Dec. 2. “I looked [through the] window and there was something set against the door.”
Wood said it wasn’t uncommon for the door to be blocked, but not usually by anything that would inhibit it from being opened.
“Usually everyone blocked that door because it won’t stay closed,” said Wood.
Wood said she, along with another nurse, were able to push the door open, but couldn’t find Hooper in the room. Woods said she could see light coming from the bottom of the bathroom door.
After staff struggled to open the door, they discovered Hooper was hanging by a sheet wedged between the bathroom door and its doorframe. Wood said staff were able to get Hooper to the ground, adding that she landed on her bottom and groaned.
Wood said Hooper initially had a strong pulse, but it weakened and CPR was administered.
The hospital’s "Code Blue" team arrived in the unit by 11:15 p.m. and Hooper was in the hospital’s ICU by 11:44 p.m. Wood said the Saint John Police Force was called just before midnight, and Hooper’s family was notified just after midnight.
Hooper died a week later. She was 27 years old.
Multiple witnesses at the inquest have testified Hooper was being checked in on every hour by nurses in the unit and was soon expected to be discharged as a patient.
Dr. Alan Fostey, a psychiatrist who treated Hooper, said he had the ultimate authority on whether she would be released as a patient. Fostey was expecting Hooper to be discharged soon but said nothing had been finalized, nor communicated to the patient.
“It wasn’t written in stone,” said Fostey on Tuesday, via video conferencing.
Fostey said Hooper “had hesitancy about being discharged,” adding it wasn’t ideal for patients with borderline personality disorder to be in a psychiatric unit environment for weeks at a time due to the challenges of “stepping out in the real world again.”
OLD RECOMMENDATIONS, NEW RECOMMENDATIONS
A jury of five people was selected on Monday to examine the evidence and testimony presented. The panel will have the ability to make recommendations with the goal of preventing similar incidents.
Renée Fournier, a director of mental health and addictions at Horizon Health Network, said two internal recommendations were made following the incident.
The first recommendation, to cut the tops of bathroom doors in private units, was implemented.
Fournier testified the second recommendation, to create a separate, non-hospital setting for patients in crisis, still hadn’t been achieved. Fournier said a suitable space hadn’t been found near the hospital’s emergency department.
One of the first recommendations made by Hillary Hooper’s family was for furniture to be strapped to each unit’s floor.
“Then you couldn’t use the bed to block the door,” said Borthwick, adding she’d also like to see a recommendation about the unit using different bedding.
“Better charting, better reporting, strap the beds down, put different bedding on,” said Borthwick. “They don’t know until it happens, and it has happened. So let’s make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
If you or someone you know is in crisis, here are some resources that are available.
- CHIMO (in New Brunswick): 1-800-667-5005
- Mental Health and Addictions Crisis Line (in Nova Scotia): 1-888-429-8167
- Canada Suicide Prevention Helpline: 1-833-456-4566
- Centre for Addiction and Mental Health: 1-800-463-2338
- Crisis Services Canada: 1-833-456-4566 or text 45645
- Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868
If you need immediate assistance call 911 or go to the nearest hospital.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Police arrest 3 Indian nationals in killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Quebec man who threatened Trudeau, Legault online sentenced to 20 months in jail
A Quebec man who pleaded guilty to threatening Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier François Legault has been sentenced to 20 months in jail.
TD worst-case scenario more likely after drug money laundering allegations: analyst
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
Human remains found in rural Sask. possibly a decade old, RCMP say
RCMP say human remains found in a rural area in central Saskatchewan may have been there for a decade or more.
2 charged after police find 'concerning and diverse' explosives at Manitoba home
Winnipeg police say they have arrested two people in their 20s after a large amount of explosives were found in a home outside of Winnipeg, Man.
Canadian doctor concerned new weight-loss drug Wegovy may be used inappropriately
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.
Spain abolishes national bullfighting award in cultural shift
Spain scrapped an annual bullfighting award on Friday, prompting a rebuke from conservatives over a backlash against a centuries-old tradition they see as an art form but which has run into growing concern for animal welfare.
Drew Carey is never quitting 'The Price Is Right'
Drew Carey took over as host of 'The Price Is Right' and hopes he’s there for life. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he told 'Entertainment Tonight' of the job he took over from longtime host Bob Barker in 2007.