Allison Holthoff was a 37-year-old mother of three children, died on New Year’s Eve at the Cumberland Regional Health Care Centre.
She was a mother of three and the volunteer deputy fire chief at Tidnish Bridge.
The woman’s husband, Gunter Holthoff, said he took his wife to the hospital when she collapsed in extreme pain after complaining of an upset stomach at their home.
Gunter claimed that after being triaged by hospital staff, his wife waited more than six hours in the emergency room.
This was when she was taken to a room inside the unit, and it was another hour before she saw a doctor and received pain treatment.
Allison Holthoff cause of death
According to her family, Holthoff succumbed to complications related to an untreated splenic aneurysm.
Halifax Examiner reported that the family believe that the condition could have been detected if she had received a CT scan.
Following her death, Holthoff’s family sued Nova Scotia Health and Dr John Atia, the physician on duty in the emergency department.
The family accused the health facility and its employee as being jointly negligent in failing to provide proper care to Holthoff.
“Holthoff was suffering from severe pain in the upper left side of her abdomen, difficulty breathing, and nausea. She could not support her own weight. The Deceased’s condition quickly deteriorated within the first hour of waiting in the hospital’s waiting room
“She was in extreme pain and nauseous. She was vomiting bile. She was unable to sit straight in her wheelchair and remained slumped in the fetal position to one side. She was no longer effectively able to verbalize sentences,” the court filing read.
The court filing further stated that Holthoff was in too much pain to stay seated and spent some time on the floor curled in a fetal position before she was placed in a private cubicle at approximately 3 PM.
No monitoring equipment was present and it wasn’t until three hours later, at about 6 pm, that a nurse re-assessed Holthoff’s vital signs.
She was taken into an observation room where she was examined by Dr Atia, who ordered an IV and pain relief. Further tests were ordered but before they could occur, the patient went into cardiac arrest.
Nova Scotia Health defence
However, in the defence filed by lawyer Karen N. Bennett-Clayton of Stewart McKelvey, Nova Scotia Health denied the accusations.
It claimed that any injury, loss or damage sustained by the Holthoff’s family was not caused by the negligence on the part of the medical facility or anyone for whom they would be responsible at law.
Further, Nova Scotia Health’s defence says that any care provided by them to Holthoff was provided reasonably, appropriately and in a manner consistent with the applicable standard care in the circ*mstances.
Nova Scotia Health asked the court to dismiss the Holthoff family’s claim and assign court costs to the family.
Allison Holtoff obituary
Below is Holthoff’s obituary as shared on Arbor Memorial;
“It is with heavy hearts and great sadness that we announce the sudden passing of Allison Leah Holthoff at the very young age of 37 on Saturday, December 31, 2022.
Allison’s incredible heart and love for her family has kept her full of life and spunk.
Her determination and the more the merrier attitude has led her to many accomplishments within her own personal growth and community. She has been a dedicated volunteer to the Tidnish Bridge Fire Department, earning the title Deputy Chief and Treasurer.
She then spent time with Cadets alongside her daughter Holly, becoming a Civilian Instructor. Allison would also run the Wild Meat Dinners, the Kids Christmas Parties, After The Bell, and the delicious Pancake Breakfasts.
This hard work and dedication to creating a better community led her to Volunteer of the year award, which she would have won many more of. Together with her family, Ali was active with operating her hobby farm on Ketchum Drive.
As a true go getter Ali enrolled in the NSCC September of 2020. Allison would work hard to achieve what she couldn’t have in her busy and rough early life. We wish you could have seen her excitement and how proud she was.
Graduating with flying colors just 3 weeks before she passed, this gave her the opportunity to work as A Funeral Director and eventually Embalmer, a dream she could now never achieve.
Allison will be dearly missed by the love of her life, Gunter Holthoff; her three amazing children, Holly and Hayden and Heidi, her Siblings, Nathan, Andrew and Jaimie; her maternal grandmother, Keith Cormier; paternal grandfather, Carl Salter, and chosen family Kelly, Fox, Tereasa, Dani and many many more, as well as a large extended Family.
Besides her dad, David Salter, Allison was also predeceased by her maternal grandfather, Roy Cormier and paternal grandmother, Nancy Salter.
Cremation has taken place under the care and direction of Campbell’s Funeral Home, Amherst, NS, 855-253-6547.
A celebration of Life for Allison will be held on Friday, January 6, 2023 from 3pm-5pm at the Tidnish Crossroads, Community Centre. Graveside service will be held on Saturday, January 7 at 1 pm in the Riverside Cemetery, Tidnish.
Memorial donations may be made in Allison’s memory to the Tidnish Bridge Fire Department or the Tidnish Crossroads & Area Community Centre.
Condolences and sharing of memories may be shared with the family via: www.campbellsamherst.ca or by visiting Campbell’s Facebook page.
