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Penticton Regional Hospital and employees subject of lawsuit over alleged negligence during birth

Hospital sued over bad birth

A South Okanagan woman is suing Penticton Regional Hospital and three physician employees for alleged negligence during the delivery of her baby.

In a publicly-available lawsuit filed March 22 in Kelowna, the woman names Interior Health Authority, which operates PRH, and three doctors, which the suit states were employed by IHA at the time of her alleged experience.

The suit alleges that on April 26, 2020, the woman was admitted to the hospital while in labour.

Over the next day, she claims multiple errors were made by her doctors: An epidural was improperly administered resulting in a "terrifying" loss of breathing and consciousness, a catheter was improperly administered and, due to ineffective anesthesia administration, she felt "extreme pain" during her C-section and was "scared for her life."

She also claims she was left with injuries that would require longer than normal recovery time.

"It was the responsibility of IHA, PRH, and their staff to treat the plaintiff with the degree of care, diligence, judgment and skill which is exercised by a responsible health authority, hospital, and staff under like or similar circumstances and with the same experience and training so as not to injure the plaintiff," reads the lawsuit.

The suit is seeking unspecified damages for the incident, due to the pain suffered and ongoing psychological injuries including PTSD, depression and anxiety.

When reached by email for comment, Interior Health Authority said "it would not be appropriate to speak to a matter that is before the courts."



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