The Howick community is mourning the sudden loss of an 11-year-old girl who passed away from a possible case of meningitis after having been seen by doctors at two different hospitals in the weeks leading up to her death.
In a publication to social media following the release of the young girl’s obituary, her mother posted they had taken their child to the Barrie Memorial Hospital on March 1 after she began bleeding from one ear. She was diagnosed with a perforated ear drum and was prescribed ear drops and antibiotics.
On March 7, the family was seen at the Sainte-Justine pediatric hospital in Montreal, where they were told the girl’s ear was healing and to stop the antibiotics. The mother explained that at this time, her daughter was unable to hold down any food or liquids. They were told she had a gastro virus and that they should make sure she was well hydrated.
One week later the girl’s health had deteriorated further, and despite attempts to resuscitate her at both the Ormstown and Sainte-Justine hospitals, she died of cardiac arrest on March 14.
In her post, the mother noted that the coroner informed them her daughter, Jade, had died from meningitis. “Neither hospital had done any tests… We lost our daughter because of the negligence of these two hospitals,” she wrote.
An article published by the Journal Saint-François confirmed the coroner’s office will be investigating the death of the girl, and a detailed report including the cause and circumstances will be completed. According to the Salaberry-de-Valleyfield-based newspaper, the Centre intégré de santé et de services sociaux de la Montérégie-Ouest (CISSSMO) is also refusing to comment on the case.
In a series of posts to Twitter, Dr. Sébastien Marin, an emergency room doctor in Ormstown who was not on call at the time of the girl’s visit on March 1, wrote that there had been a two-week period from her visit to the time of her death. “One of the complications from an ear infection is meningitis,” he wrote, while admitting he had not seen the patient files from the Barrie Memorial or Sainte-Justine.
Community response
While grieving the sudden loss of Jade, the parents at École Saint-Jean and the Howick community have launched a GoFundMe campaign to help the family “gather the strength and courage to face this terrible ordeal.” To contribute to the campaign, visit: gofundme.com/f/pour-une-nouvelle-etoile-partie-trop-tot.
The funeral for Jade Bergevin is scheduled for Saturday, March 25, at 10:30 a.m. at the Église Saint-Clément in Beauharnois. (SR)
