The death of the Jehovah’s witness Eloise Dupuis: her husband will have access to the medical record

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The husband of the young Jehovah’s witness died after his blood during childbirth will have access to the medical record.

Nicolas Lachance

Thursday, 13 July, 2017 12:05

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Thursday, 13 July, 2017 12:05

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The court grants the husband of the young Jehovah’s witness died after his blood during a delivery, access to medical records of the deceased because it is his right of legal heir.

• READ ALSO : who Died in childbirth: the medical file of the Jehovah’s witness Eloise Dupuis claimed by her husband

Paul-André Roy, the husband of Eloise Dupuis, was successful in the superior Court. The tribunal has reversed the decision of the CIUSSS Chaudière-Appalaches, who refused the husband access to the medical file of the Jehovah’s Witness. The Hôtel Dieu de Lévis has 14 days to send the case file covering the period from 5 to October 12, 2016.

He wanted to review the file independently, he said, to determine “all of the causes that have contributed to the death of Eloise.

The court defers to the right of the heir in agreeing that the legal representatives of a deceased user are entitled to receive the information contained in the file, and, to the extent that the disclosure is necessary to the exercise of their rights.

“In the opinion of the Court, the fact want to shed light on the precise causes of the deaths, in exceptional circumstances, such as the one in this folder, is in itself the exercise of a right by a liquidator, the latter has an obligation of due diligence in the execution of his office,” said the honourable Alain Michaud.

Posthumous reputation

The request also indicated that the death of his wife has been highly publicized and that “without evidence of any kind, several journalistic sources had said that the death of Mrs. Dupuis was caused by his refusal to accept a blood transfusion”.

The petition asserted that Mrs. Dupuis would have referred to a gynecologist-obstetrician, upon admission to the hospital, that she was a Jehovah’s witness and that she could not “consent to a blood transfusion”. Following a caesarean section, it has been plunged into a medically induced coma. Her husband became the legal representative by reason of a power of attorney and has taken the decision to reiterate “the choice of mrs. Dupuis”.

Thus, by obtaining the medical record, the husband of Eloise Dupuis wants to protect “the posthumous reputation of the deceased”.

Once again, the Court argues that it acts as an heir. “Today, what matters is that the right to the respect of the posthumous reputation indicated by the applicant is actually identified and justified by him”.

The document, however, indicates that the question of the study is not to judge the merits or not of the allegations of Mr. Roy. Other legal steps may be used to determine if the complaints are accurate.

Complications and death

Eloise Dupuis died on October 12, 2016, six days after his entrance to the hospital to give birth to her first child. Following a caesarean section, Eloise Dupuis has had to remove the uterus because of too great loss of blood.

Paul-André Roy had filed an application instituting proceedings in the superior Court in may last, calling at the Hôtel-Dieu de Lévis to give him access to the medical file of his wife. The hospital of the South Shore (Quebec) had previously refused the request of the man. It is a counsel of Jehovah’s witnesses, Me Sylvain Deschênes, who represented the Paul-André Roy before the Tribunal and who had signed this petition.

A coroner’s inquest is in progress in this folder.