Husband looks for answers in wife's death

March 2, 2009

Years after having the last of three children, Paula McIntyre underwent surgery to tighten up the skin on her stomach.

She died less than two weeks later.

Now her husband Dale is looking for answers as to why his wife didn't get the care she needed before her death.

Paula had a blood disorder called cold agglutinin that can cause blood to clot if the body gets too cold. She discovered she had the disorder after her third child was born and the doctors were aware of it when she went in for the surgery.

A surgeon performed the operation at the Chaleur Regional Hospital in Bathurst on Feb. 2 and she left the hospital the next day.

"She was in pain after that," Dale said.

Before Paula left the hospital, she was given Tylenol 3 for the pain but Dale said it got so bad she ran out three days later.

By that time she was complaining about back pain and went back to Bathurst to see the surgeon as soon as she could, Dale said.

"She explained to him because she never had back problem before."

Paula also went to see her family doctor when her legs started to swell to the point she could hardly walk.

"Her thighs were rubbing together because they were so swollen from retaining fluid."

Dale said neither of the doctors performed any tests to find out what was wrong with his wife.

"I find it just a pure shame."

Despite her medical condition, Paula was no stranger to surgery. She had ceasarian sections for each of her children and also had a breast reduction, all without any of the problems she experienced after the tummy tuck.

Before undergoing the procedure, she researched it and spoke with people who had the surgery to make sure it would be safe and she would know what to expect.

But somewhere along the way something went wrong and she died when a blood clot went into her lung.

The coroner has completed an autopsy and although he has spoken with him, Dale doesn't expect to see a copy of the results for a few months.

Dale said he thinks his wife was overlooked when she went to the doctors for help and he doesn't understand why they didn't look after her.

"I want to ask why she wasn't taken care of and why she was sent home to die. "

When Paula went to the hospital, the swelling in her legs was so bad she could hardly walk, but Dale said her doctor still didn't admit her to the hospital.

"We were disappointed when she didn't admit her."

On the day she died, Feb. 12, then days after the surgery, Paula and Dale were at home when he decided to go down to the basement to watch a movie. Paula was upstairs in the bathroom where she fell and yelled out for help.

Dale heard her and ran upstairs to find her on the bathroom floor. He said he tried to do CPR to resuscitate her, but there was nothing he could do.

"She died in my arms."

Dale now wants a coroner's inquest to look into the treatment his wife received as she sought help from doctors.

"It's not going to bring Paula back, but I don't want anyone else to go through what I went through."

Dale said before she started to have problems his wife was happy with how the surgery turned out.

"She didn't have to die that way."

Public Safety Department spokesman Daniel Lessard confirmed there is an investigation going on, but he couldn't give a timeframe for when they will release the findings and said his department doesn't comment on specific cases.

"After a sudden and unexpected death a local coroner is investigating and when he's done the case will be reviewed by the office of the chief coroner and they will communicate the results to the family members."

As for the possibility of a coroner's inquest, Lessard said the coroner will determine if one is necessary after he completes his investigation.

"There is an inquest if the coroner determines that it would be beneficial in addressing community concern about the death and assisting in finding information about the deceased or the circumstances around the death."

The grieving husband and father hopes he gets answers and said he doesn't want what happened to his wife to happen to anyone else. He adds he believes the medical system "pretty much failed her."

The coroner and Chaleur Regional Hospital were contacted, but both said they were not able to comment on the case.