Alberta Health Minister Sarah Hoffman met with the family of a young Edmonton girl who slipped into a coma following a dental procedure nearly two months ago.
The meeting took place at the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital, where four-year-old Amber Athwal has been since Oct. 10.
“I mostly listened, listened to their journey, how it started,” Hoffman said after. “They showed me some videos of Amber at their housewarming party which was very recently and we also talked about how they are hopeful for the future but they are nervous about how they are going to get there.”
“We talked specifically about the service she’s had – the Glenrose is a world-class facility and the Stollery as well- and they want to make sure she continues to have support,” she added.
Hoffman said the family wanted to find out about what programs they had available to them as they hope to help their daughter through the transition of coming home and admitted “they have a long road ahead of them.”
The family did not speak to media after their talk with Hoffman, but earlier this week, the girl’s father – Raman Athwal – said he had requested to speak with the health minister directly to find out why a dental procedure left his Amber in a coma and what is being done to prevent a recurrence.
“Until we hear anything from the government or from Alberta Health Services – why this happened or what happened to Amber – we are not allowing the doctors to sedate her again,” he said Monday.
READ MORE: Father of 4-year-old Edmonton girl says dental association’s decision ‘is too late’
Watch below: Watch below: The Alberta Dental Association and College is looking at its sedation policy but an Edmonton father says it’s too late for his daughter. Vinesh Pratap filed this report on Oct. 31, 2016.
On Sept. 7, Amber was rushed to the Stollery Children’s Hospital after a dental visit. Her family said that after an exam, they were told by a specialist Amber needed a dental procedure done that day. The family said the specialist asked if Amber ate breakfast and when told yes, they allege he said it was OK and put her under with a general anaesthetic. They allege Amber suffered from a lack of oxygen during the operation and was rushed to hospital.
READ MORE: Edmonton family says little girl left in coma after dental visit
According to Amber’s family, doctors said an MRI showed the girl has a brain injury, although the severity of the injury has not yet been established. She remains unconscious at the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital.
On Oct. 28, the Alberta Dental Association and College decided to “immediately suspend” the practice of allowing one dentist to provide deep sedation or general anesthesia while also providing dental treatment.
READ MORE: Alberta dental association suspends single operator model for deep sedation, anesthesia
“The system has evolved a lot over the last five years, let alone the last 100 years, and I’m sure it will continue to evolve as we move forward,” Hoffman said.
The dental association confirmed it had “received notice of a reportable incident involving a dental patient from the administration of general anesthesia at an Edmonton dental clinic in early September.”
It also said Dr. William Mather “has a restriction from administering sedation and/or general anesthetic on any person, until further notice,” although it declined to provide further details pending the completion of its own review.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to support the family as both of Amber’s parents are not working as they care for their daughter during her recovery.
-With files from Emily Mertz.
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