SASKATOON -- The Saskatchewan Health Authority says it will be conducting a clinical review into the death of 30-year-old Aly Jenkins.
Jenkins, a prominent curler, died Sunday from complications while in labour with her third child, leaving family and friends mourning.
“A maternal death is rare, and when it occurs, it is heart-wrenching for the families and the care providers involved,” the SHA said in a statement.
Clinical reviews are standard after any rare or uncommon occurrence, the SHA said.
The review allows health care teams to look closely at what happened and possibly find ways to improve patient care and safety.
According to a note from Jenkins' mother posted on Facebook by a family friend, Jenkins suffered an amniotic fluid embolism - a rare complication where amniotic fluid enters the mother's bloodstream causing a serious reaction.
Jenkins’ baby was rushed to the neonatal intensive care unit where she is said to be improving.
“So far everything is looking better hour by hour,” Jenkins' husband Scott wrote in a Facebook update on Tuesday..
The Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada says fatal complications resulting from childbirth are more common than many realize, with close to eight to 11 cases per 100,000 live births.
“I think we’ve been rather complacent in Canada. We thought that our rates were low, and so we haven’t had to really worry about this,” the organization’s CEO Dr. Jennifer Blake said in an interview with CTV News.
There are roughly 25 to 35 maternal deaths in Canada each year, according to Blake
“We thought we had the problem solved but it wasn’t like that”
A GoFundMe page to help Jenkins’ husband and three children has raised $116,990.
