Coroner urges Quebec to recognize systemic racism as report into Joyce Echaquan’s death released

MONTREAL – The coroner who investigated the death last year of Joyce Echaquan says the Quebec government should recognize the existence of systemic racism and make a commitment to rooting it out of institutions.

Coroner Gehane Kamel’s report into the death of Echaquan, released Friday, finds that while the death was accidental, the racism and prejudice the Atikamekw woman was subjected to contributed to her death.

The report makes several recommendations to various bodies, but the first one is for the government to acknowledge systemic racism, something Quebec Premier Francois Legault’s government has repeatedly refused to do.

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Echaquan, a 37-year-old mother of seven, filmed herself on Facebook Live as a nurse and an orderly were heard making derogatory comments toward her shortly before her death Sept. 28, 2020 at a hospital in Joliette, Que., northeast of Montreal.

The video of her treatment went viral and drew outrage and condemnation across the province and the country.

“In Ms. Echaquan’s case, if there hadn’t been a video, it’s a safe bet that this event would never have been brought to public attention,” Kamel wrote. “When the system withdraws defensively on itself, this is the very definition of systemic racism.”

Kamel says the existence of systemic racism was raised numerous times after Echaquan’s death, particularly with regard to the Atikamekw community’s concerns about receiving medical care.

She noted the findings of the Viens Commission, a Quebec inquiry that reported in 2019 on Indigenous communities’ interaction with government services, showed the Atikamekw had long-standing complaints about the Joliette hospital, well before Echaquan’s death.

“It is therefore my duty, as coroner, to do everything in my power to avoid that a member of the Indigenous community or of any other origin receives care such as that offered to Ms. Echaquan,” Kamel wrote.

She noted the government has taken steps to address the situation, including removing the head of the regional health authority and mandating cultural sensitivity training. But she added, “the recognition of a disparity in treatment is fundamental, if not vital” to restore trust.

“Efforts are all the more necessary as the findings of this investigation indicate that Ms. Echaquan was indeed ostracized, that her death is directly related to the care received during her hospitalization in September 2020 and that her death could have been avoided,” Kamel wrote.

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Echaquan was rushed to hospital on Sept. 26, 2020 by ambulance complaining of severe stomach pains. The inquiry heard she was initially misdiagnosed as going through withdrawal from opioids or narcotics.

“Based on this prejudice, it followed that her pleas for help will not be taken seriously,” Kamel wrote. “This label will follow her throughout her stay and will guide the actions of the nursing staff until her death.”

The inquiry heard a nurse in training was assigned to Echaquan, who wasn’t properly monitored after being restrained twice, including just before her death. Better surveillance would have got her to intensive care more quickly when she needed it most, Kamel concluded. Echaquan died of a pulmonary edema that was linked to a rare heart condition.

Kamel said she will not comment further until a news conference Tuesday in Trois-Rivieres, Que., where hearings were held in May and June of this year.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 1, 2021.