Quebec politicians outraged by death of 4-year-old in Ivujivik, call for further investigations
Family of Jusi Padlayat says their medical concerns were dismissed leading up to the boy’s death
Quebec politicians are expressing outrage over the death of a four-year-old boy in the Nunavik village of Ivujivik after reports the child was denied medical treatment.
In a news release Thursday, Québec Solidaire spokesperson Sol Zanetti is calling for answers over the death of Jusi Padlayat, who Zanetti said died on August 3 after his parents brought him to the local clinic for stomach pains on more than one occasion, for which he wasn’t treated.
In an interview with La Presse, Padlayat’s grandmother, Annie Mangiuk, said the family’s concerns were ignored by medical staff who told them to give the boy Advil or Tylenol.
Mangiuk told La Presse that Padlayat was found unconscious on August 1 and was transferred to the local nursing station, before being sent to the Montreal Children’s Hospital where he died two days later.
“Leaving a child to suffer for days is unacceptable and raises serious questions of neglect,” Zanetti said. “If this is, once again, a case of systemic racism in our health services, it must be clearly identified and action taken accordingly.”
Zanetti also called on the Commissioner of Children’s Rights and Welfare to investigate Padlayat’s death. CBC News has reached out to the Commissioner’s office for comment.
The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP) is also calling for improvement to health care in northern communities, citing more telemedicine options as one solution.
“People in Ungava should never have to wonder whether they will have access to the care they need because of where they live,” said Sandrine Rioux, QLP’s candidate in Ungava, which covers Ivujivik.
In a statement, Joyce’s Principle Office said the death is a “brutal reminder” that “respect for dignity must translate on the ground into genuine listening and concrete action across all services offered to First Nations and Inuit.”
The office said Padlayat’s death echoes that of Joyce Echaquan, an Atikamekw woman who filmed staff at a Joliette, Que., hospital hurling racist insults at her as she lay dying.
“No family should ever have to endure such an ordeal or feel that their words and concerns are being minimized,” said Sylvestre Desterres, interim executive director of the Joyce’s Principle Office.
The Inuulitsivik Health Centre and the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services previously told CBC News there will be both internal and external reviews into the death.
Quebec’s coroners office also confirmed it is investigating, but would not comment on causes or circumstances around the death.
The Montreal Children’s Hospital said it is unable to comment on individual cases.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Yukon’s find-a-health-provider waitlist down by half as territory welcomes new doctors, CBC News
Finland: Brakes on Lapland health cuts a win for Arctic communities, says Sami Parliament, Eye on the Arctic
United States: Senators, including Alaska’s, sound alarm on cuts impacting Indigenous health care agency, Eye on the Arctic
