Alberta orders review after man dies while waiting in Edmonton emergency department

The Alberta government has ordered a review after a 44-year-old man died while waiting in an emergency department in Edmonton earlier this week.

Hospitals and Surgical Health Services Minister Matt Jones said in a social media post that he has directed Acute Care Alberta and Covenant Health to jointly review the circumstances and factors leading to the death of Prashanth Sreekumar at Gray Nuns Community Hospital last Monday.

Sreekumar, who was experiencing chest pain, reportedly died in the ER after waiting for almost eight hours to see a doctor.

The accountant was in his office when the chest pain started. His client took him to the hospital, his wife Niharika Sreekumar told CBC News on Saturday.

She went with him while her husband waited. He spent almost the entire time in the waiting area complaining of chest pain.

“Once in his entire lifetime in Canada when he needed that system, that treatment, that medical care, he was denied.”

He said that while waiting, his condition worsened. He believes his death could have been prevented had he not been treated properly.

“I want justice for Prashant.”

Varinder Bhullar, a family friend, said in a phone interview. Initial tests did not show anything abnormal but his blood pressure kept increasing. Prashant Sreekumar died of alleged cardiac arrest soon after triage.

“This was completely avoidable. It’s a tragedy,” Bhullar said.

“Sometimes we think it’s God’s will, but this time I think humans could have intervened enough to save him.”

Bhullar described Prashant Sreekumar as a good friend, a man who loved his family and led an active life, often playing cricket.

A new provincial health agency, Acute Care Alberta, said it would participate in the review and implement any recommendations. It said the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has also launched an independent investigation.

CBC News has no information on how busy the emergency department was that day. Covenant Health said in a statement that it was unable to comment on the specifics of any patient’s care for confidentiality reasons.

A family friend has set up a fundraising event for Prashanth Sreekumar’s family – three children aged three, 10 and 14 and his wife – to assist with their ongoing needs. He was the sole breadwinner of the family as his wife stayed at home to take care of their special needs child.

Niharika Sreekumar said she was proud of her husband, who was a “superhero father” to their children.

“They’re missing him,” she said. “He provided them with everything they wanted. He had great plans.”