Family of man who died in ER says they’ve resolved Horizon lawsuit

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The family of a man who died awaiting care in a Fredericton ER says it has resolved a lawsuit with the provincial health authority.

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A lawsuit against Horizon Health Network and two nurses under the province’s Fatal Accidents Act was filed in July 2024 by the estate of Donald Darrell Mesheau, 78, who died of heart failure in a waiting room at the Dr. Everett Chalmers Regional Hospital on July 12, 2022.

The jury at a coroner’s inquest in April 2024 found that Mesheau had died of natural causes and recommended that “all stakeholders” should “collaborate and take ownership” of hospital capacity issues after a witness told the jury that there had been issues cycling patients from acute care beds into the hospital.

On Wednesday, Mesheau’s son Ryan Mesheau announced that the lawsuit had been resolved, adding that the family would be pushing for changes to the law and that he would be establishing a scholarship in his father’s name for nursing students at the University of New Brunswick.

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“This marks the conclusion of a long and emotionally challenging journey filled with pain and difficult moments,” Mesheau said in a statement. “We appreciate that the case has been resolved, although it does not necessarily bring contentment or closure.”

Court records indicated that a consent order to discontinue the lawsuit was filed in Fredericton Court of King’s Bench Oct. 21. Brunswick News requested to see the document and did not receive a response by press time.

Mesheau declined comment beyond the statement, which did not address the monetary value of the settlement, citing respect for the agreements in place.

Provincial health spokesperson Tara Chislett referred comment to Horizon, which confirmed that the civil case had been discontinued in a statement Thursday and declined further comment.

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Darrell Mesheau’s death, which was deemed to be non-criminal by Fredericton police in January 2024, led to a public outcry and the firing of then Horizon CEO Dr. John Dornan by Progressive Conservative Premier Blaine Higgs, as well as the dismissal of Dorothy Shephard as health minister and the dissolution of both the Horizon and Vitalité Health Network boards.

Dornan settled a wrongful dismissal case with the province in April 2024 after it appealed a $2 million award by a labour adjudicator, and then was elected as a Liberal MLA in October and appointed health minister in Premier Susan Holt’s government. Horizon’s after-action review included eight recommendations that were endorsed by the coroner’s jury, including making sure the Canadian Triage and Acuity System guidelines are followed, standardizing patient transfer from ambulances and facilitating transfer of non-urgent admissions.

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On Thursday, Horizon declined to answer a question about what progress had been made on the recommendations of the coroner’s jury.

At the inquest, a jury heard that the Fredericton man had arrived at the hospital at 9:33 p.m. on July 11, 2022, with concerns over “weakness” and a week-long cold. Seven hours later, he still hadn’t seen a doctor before he was found unresponsive at 4:33 a.m. and was later pronounced dead. 

The jury heard that Mesheau had been triaged at level 3 under the Canadian Triage and Acuity System, which suggests that a patient needs to be seen by a doctor within 30 minutes, 90 per cent of the time. 

The lawsuit was filed by his sister and executor Susan Mesheau on behalf of his estate and family members, including three other siblings, two children and his granddaughter, and also named nurses April Knowles and Danielle Othen, who were on shift that night, as defendants.

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Brunswick News reached out to Knowles and Othen for comment on the lawsuit’s resolution and did not receive a response by press time.

Including the nurses in the suit drew the ire of Higgs after it was first filed, who suggested the government would introduce legislation to protect health-care professionals from lawsuits, with Ryan Mesheau saying they were required to do so under the law. After the change in government, Horizon asked a judge in February to dismiss the lawsuit.

In the lawsuit, the family alleged, among other things, that Horizon and the nurses “failed to provide proper medical care and attention” which “caused or contributed to Darrell Mesheau‘s death,” including reassessment every 30 minutes, investigating the man’s symptoms and taking steps to have him examined by a doctor.

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The lawsuit sought pecuniary loss, or financial damages, on behalf of the family, alleging that Mesheau’s granddaughter had suffered a loss of “companionship, guidance and support,” which is a form of special damages under the act. 

“Our father’s sudden death has profoundly changed us; the grief, sadness, and anger have reshaped our lives. We miss his advice, his support, and his company every day,” Ryan Mesheau wrote in the statement Wednesday. “However, we are determined to ensure that his passing serves as a catalyst for positive change for all New Brunswickers.”

Mesheau said he and other family members would be seeking “long-overdue reform” to the Fatal Accidents Act, passed in 2012 and consolidated in 2023, which he called “among the most outdated in Canada,” claiming that it “assigns next to no monetary value to the life of an elderly person or child.”

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“This is unfair and wrong,” Mesheau wrote. “Every life has value, and our laws must recognize the emotional, personal, and other impacts of a wrongful death, at any age.”

Mesheau also said he would establish a UNB scholarship for students pursuing degrees in nursing “to celebrate our father’s legacy” and “serve as a reminder that excellence and accountability are vital in healthcare.”

“Dad believed deeply in education and in helping others, so I cannot think of a more fitting tribute than to support the next generations of nurses,” Mesheau said.

The family is “deeply grateful for the support we have received throughout this long and painful journey,” Mesheau said in the statement. 

“We hope to turn our loss into a source of hope and progress, ensuring that our father’s life and values continue to inspire meaningful change for the people of New Brunswick,” he said.

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