Ottawa woman calling for health-care reform in N.B. after husband died on vacation

An Ontario woman whose husband died in a New Brunswick hospital while on vacation is urging Canadians to advocate for any loved ones in an emergency room — and she's calling on candidates in New Brunswick's provincial election to address what she calls a crisis in health care.

Anne Makhoul, and her husband, Danny, 64, were drawn to the Maritimes: she has roots in Nova Scotia, they honeymooned in P.E.I., brought their children there, and have visited New Brunswick on various occasions.  

"I'll never not love the Maritimes, but it's certainly been coloured by my experience in Moncton," she said in an interview from her home in Ottawa. 

Makhoul said she spent a terrifying 36 hours at the Moncton Hospital with her husband of 40 years in August 2023. 

"Compassion fatigue slapped me in the face," she said, of her time in the emergency department, and she believes her husband didn't receive appropriate care there. 

Three people died while waiting in emergency departments in New Brunswick in 2022 — one of whom was at the same hospital as Makhoul's husband would be the following year. 

The first death prompted Premier Blaine Higgs to say the province was in a crisis and to overhaul its health-care leadership, including firing the CEO of one of New Brunswick's health authorities. The death of Darrell Mesheau ultimately led to an inquest that resulted in recommendations to improve emergency room services.  

Health care is a major issue in the Oct. 21 election. 

Makhoul and her husband were on the second day of what was to be a two-week vacation, on a stopover in Sackville, N.B, on Aug. 12, when Danny began experiencing abdominal pain. They had eaten some soup that didn't sit right with either of them, she said, so they thought that might be the culprit. 

But Danny's pain intensified: he had diarrhea and started throwing up. The emergency department at Sackville Memorial Hospital only operates from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., so at 11:43 p.m., Makhoul called 911. 

Ambulance New Brunswick records show paramedics arrived within eight minutes, recorded Danny's pain as an eight out of 10, put in an IV and administered fluids and medication. They wrote in their notes that they did not give him Tylenol or Advil since he was vomiting. 

After providing care for an hour and 46 minutes, paramedics took Makhoul's husband to the Moncton Hospital; it took another 35 minutes to get there.   

Makhoul said she was pleased with the treatment the paramedics provided, but not by the emergency department. 

"They really didn't seem to be very interested," she said. "They just made a decision that, you know, 'This guy has food poisoning. Why is she bothering us?'"