Family calls for review of nurses' order decision into man's death after lengthy wait in Montreal ER

The family of a man who died after an hours-long wait in the ER at a Montreal hospital is calling for a review of a decision that cleared the nurses who saw him of any wrongdoing.

The family of a man who died after an hours-long wait in the ER at a Montreal hospital is calling for a review of a decision that cleared the nurses who saw him of any wrongdoing.

Akeem Scott went to the emergency room at the Jewish General Hospital in June 2019 with intense stomach pain, and after waiting for four hours, he left without being treated, according to a coroner's report. The 26-year-old man went to a friend's house and died from acute peritonitis.

The Quebec Order of Nurses exonerated the nursing staff involved, but now the family wants that decision reviewed.

Scott would have celebrated his 30th birthday with family just two days ago. Instead, four years after his death, his mother and brother are still left searching for answers.

"He would have been alive if he got the help that he needed at that time," said Scott's mother, Marcia Samuels, at a news conference Friday.

According to the coroner's report, Scott was triaged at level 3 when he showed up at the ER, which means he should have been seen by a doctor within 30 minutes. At one point, he lay in a fetal position on the floor, writhing in pain.

"They just ignored him, completely ignored him," Scott said.