Man blames hospital for fiancee's death

Just weeks ago, Shevon Edwards, a teacher at the St Jago High School, was busy planning his wedding with his fiancee, Shanice Lewis. But today, he is faced with the pain of planning her funeral.

Lewis, who was a teacher at Eltham High School in St Catherine, passed away at the Spanish Town Hospital on April 10 after being admitted for stomach pains two days earlier.

THE WEEKEND STAR spoke with Edwards, who says he strongly believes that his fiancee died as a result of negligence on the part of the hospital.

"She was vomiting and complaining about belly pain. I thought it was gas initially, so I gave her something to eat, but she continued to vomit, and then I took her to the hospital Sunday morning," he said.

Edwards said that after undergoing a series of tests, a recommendation was made for Lewis to do an ultrasound the following day.

"When I visited her the Monday, she was in extreme pain, and her hands were swollen. She told me they had forgotten to put on her drip, so they had to rush to give her three bags of drip back to back. She is asthmatic, so she was having breathing problems. They administered Voltaren to her, and from what I know, that medication should not be given to asthma patients," he said.

Edwards said a few hours later, Lewis' mouth became swollen, and her condition appeared worse.

"Later in the night, she called. She was crying, saying that her pain was getting worse and the doctors were not paying her any mind. I was on the phone when she called the nurse, and when she came, she (the nurse) told her that she had already called her 25 times, and she had documentation to do. She later had to pass faeces and had to do it on the floor, " he said.

Edwards said his fiancee continued to have breathing problems, and he encouraged her to conserve her energy and focus on breathing.

"Her tongue was swollen, and she took a photo of it and sent it to me. I showed it to another doctor, and he told me that she may have had stomach bleeding. I told her I was coming the morning, but by the time I got there, she was already dead," he said.

INVESTIGATION UNDER WAY

When THE WEEKEND STAR contacted Taneisha Lewis, public relations officer at the South East Regional Health Authority, she confirmed that Lewis indeed died at the Spanish Town Hospital. She stated that the hospital has met with the family and an investigation is currently underway.

Meanwhile, Edwards said that he and other family members continue to seek answers, but none are forthcoming from the hospital staff. He stated that an autopsy was done last Monday, but they are yet to obtain a copy.

"We were told that we would have to make a written request for it, and it would take five working days. We are having a very hard time because we don't know what killed her. Her mom is an elderly woman, and while she was by her daughter's death bed crying, they were giving her all type of documents to sign. She didn't even know if she was signing away her rights at the time," she said.

Edwards told THE WEEKEND STAR that Lewis was a vibrant individual who was loved by anyone who came in contact with her.

"Before she began working at Eltham as a mathematics teacher, she heard a lot of negative comments about the institution, but she was determined to leave a positive imprint on them. Everyone is devastated by her passing," he said.