The final day of an inquest into the death of a Saskatchewan woman centered on the testimony of two nurses who cared for her during her final hours.
Ronalda Wescoup, 40, was found unresponsive in a medical observation cell at the women’s jail near Prince Albert at 8:15 pm June 4, around four hours after arriving at the jail.
A timeline submitted in evidence shows that Wescoup had been arrested June 3 in Saskatoon for alledgly stealing a bottle of alcohol. She then appeared in provincial court and was ordered by a judge to remain in custody and transferred to Pine Grove Correctional Centre, the only women’s jail in the province.
Lawyers representing the Ministry of Justice, Elizabeth Fry Society and the Coroner’s office asked questions of the nine witnesses during the two-day inquest.
Two registered nurses, Lisa Venn and Alicia York, who assessed Wescoup provided testimony on the second day of the inquest.
York said she conducted a medical intake assessment of Wescoup upon her arrival. She said Wescoup was cooperative and forthcoming in her information from ella and told her, “ella she had a very bad hangover” and ella needed something to eat and some sleep.
York said her vital signs were within the normal range; however, she had a high rating on a health screening assessment for drugs and alcohol.
She said she notified a doctor and he recommended that they repeat the screening and vital sign assessment in two hours.
Venn testified that she assessed Wescoup prior to 7:45 pm Venn then called a doctor to provide information about Wescoup’s condition and no medication or treatments were ordered at that time.
Wescoup was placed alone in a cell near the nursing station and at 8:15 pm she was found unresponsive.
Venn said CPR was started, an ambulance was called and an automated external defibrillator was used to try to revive Wescoup.
The cause of death listed in hospital records states that Wescoup died from cardiac arrest.
Both nurses said a policy change at Pine Grove in 2020 now provides nurses with the authority to call an ambulance to take clients to hospital without a doctor’s order.
The Saskatchewan Coroners Service Chief Forensic Pathologist Shaun Ladham said he found Wescoup to suffer from underlying conditions such as alcohol abuse that may have contributed to the cardiac arrest that Wescoup died from.
The autopsy found Wescoup had an enlarged heart and liver indicating chronic alcohol abuse.
Ladham said crystals found in her lungs indicate previous intravenous drug use and she also had a previous Hepatitis C infection.
He said the cause of death was not foul play and heart arrhythmia and a possible seizure from alcohol withdrawal may have occurred prior to her death.
Following Ladham’s remarks, the Coroner’s Council lawyer Robin Ritter asked a question submitted by Wescoup’s father Ron Bruce, who was present at the inquest.
“Could she have been saved if she’d been sent to the hospital?” asked Ritter on Bruce’s behalf.
Ladham said he couldn’t provide that answer but did say evidence found in the autopsy suggests Wescoup suffered a seizure.
The testimony concluded on Tuesday at 1:00 pm and the two-man, four-woman jury was tasked with making recommendations to help prevent similar deaths in the future. The recommendations will be presented to the Saskatchewan Ministry of Justice upon the inquiry’s conclusion.
Bruce said Ronalda was better known as Rhonda and she was a member of the Long Plain First Nation in Manitoba.