Address by those closest to deceased woman with child

Photo: et.wikipedia.org

Relatives of the deceased woman and child forwarded complaints towards hospital and emergency medical care to Estonian TV's «Eyewitness» accusing the medical workers in lack of concern and compassion.

Underneath, read parts of the address:

We are writing regarding the tragic death of an expectant woman which reached the media irrespective of our will. Reading the comments and condolences primarily by the Pelgulinn obstetrics department representative and the head of Tallinn emergency medical care, we cannot stay silent in our grief considering that while alive the member of our family found no compassionate care or respectful treatment in said institutions while seeking help.

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In the morning of January 27th the young woman under the age of 30 and seventh month pregnant awoke with pain in shoulders. The pain was growing in severity and shooting into lower abdomen, rapidly becoming unbearable. Therefore, she asked her husband to call the ambulance. All these complaints, the husband forwarded to the alarm centre by phone. While waiting for the ambulance, because of the pain the woman was no longer able to move. Having arrived, an ambulance worker begun by complaining who she had to stumble around in some dark yard. Entering the room, she ordered that the woman stand up herself while commenting something to the tune of «you are young and must make it, how is it you can’t make it!»

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As the woman was having difficulty to even move, to say nothing about walking, they asked the ambulance to drive up in the yard so it would be easier for her to reach it. Initially, the ambulance driver declined referring to the narrowness of the gate, though forestry vehicles have entered with timber. Eventually, he agreed. Meanwhile, an ambulance worker was still inside and commanding that the woman stand up. As she was unable to do so, eventually her husband helped her up somehow, to get dressed and downstairs and into the ambulance. It was all extremely difficult for her because of the pain but she tried to help along as she was able. As her husband had to take the other child to kindergarten, he was unable to accompany the wife and ambulance, wherefore the crew took his phone number and promised to let him know when something gets clarified. The promise was not kept.

The wife called him herself from the obstetrics hospital and told him that the doctors said it was nerve pain and she should go back home. They gave suggestions regarding painkillers. Thereafter, they sat her in the corridor in a wheelchair. Though she was a bit better due to the painkillers given by the medical staff, she was still in great pain. She called her brother by phone and asked him to come by car and pick her up.

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At home, it all continued: the pain was so severe she could not take off the clothes nor do anything. Having been home for a very short time, it got worse and she yelled: «Ambulance, ambulance!» Promptly, her husband called the ambulance again. During the phone call, his wife cried out for help saying she was not able to breathe. A while after the phone call, the husband went out for a moment to see if the ambulance had arrived. Entering the room again, his wife was in pain on the floor. As the ambulance arrived, the husband met them in the yard; during that time, the wife had collapsed and was on the floor, unconscious. The ambulance crew begun resuscitating her, but with no results. Thereafter, they decided to take her to North-Estonian Regional Hospital, but even there they managed not to save the lives of the mother and child.

The day after, they called her husband from the Pelgulinn hospital, extended condolences while noting that all the analyses were okay. At our initial assessment the claim isn’t true as the blood tests were not actually quite okay. Even excluding the analyses, many a question remains hanging for the relatives, primarily about how, next to all the papers and numbers, they failed to see the suffering person who was sent away from the hospital in such a condition.  

We wish to add that the Pelgulinn obstetrics hospital needs to explain their claim that the woman herself wanted to go back home. We find this claim is probably not true as being contrary to the documents we possess as well as the conversations between family members on that day, and the events.