A criminal probe is underway after an 83-year-old Canadian woman, identified as Brigitte Stegemann, was euthanized despite her opposition to the practice due to religious beliefs. Her granddaughter, Brigitte Kranendonk, told CBN News that Stegemann had been diagnosed with stomach cancer and repeatedly rejected MAiD.
Kranendonk stated that on July 10th, just two days before the procedure, her grandmother was reportedly inconsolable and said she had made a mistake. On the day of her death, when staff attempted to confirm Stegemann's consent, she was unresponsive yet the MAiD process went ahead within ten minutes.
Family Contends Lack of Mental Capacity
The family argues that their grandmother lacked mental capacity due to a developmental or cognitive disability. They claim that during medical consultations, she incorrectly stated having only one sibling when in reality she had 13 siblings and was unable to make significant decisions independently.
Furthermore, the family reported that on the day of her death, the nurse struggled to find the correct vein for the procedure, reportedly poking Stegemann several times. The family expressed concern over the amount of blood seen during the IV insertion process, which they described as unusually high and alarming.
Filing a Formal Complaint
The family has filed a formal complaint with Ontario's Chief Medical Coroner requesting an investigation into mental capacity issues, bypassing of power of attorney, and lack of clear consent. They also called for greater clinical transparency and mandatory family inclusion in decision-making processes involving cognitively vulnerable patients.
💬 Comments (0)