{"id":605500,"date":"2026-04-15T10:54:11","date_gmt":"2026-04-15T10:54:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/605500\/"},"modified":"2026-04-15T10:54:11","modified_gmt":"2026-04-15T10:54:11","slug":"family-says-mans-blocked-tissue-donation-highlights-staffing-gap-at-hema-quebec","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/605500\/","title":{"rendered":"Family says man’s blocked tissue donation highlights staffing gap at H\u00e9ma-Qu\u00e9bec"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Text<\/p>\n

Listen to this article<\/p>\n

Estimated 3 minutes<\/p>\n

The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.<\/p>\n

Chris Cussen was taken off life support in Montreal on Easter weekend, and he hoped his tissue would be donated to those who need it. His family soon learned that wouldn’t be possible.<\/p>\n

His stepmother, Debbie St-Martin, was told by the hospital that H\u00e9ma-Qu\u00e9bec was not available to collect the donation on the Saturday.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople don\u2019t just die from Monday to Friday,\u201d said St-Martin, who described Cussen as a generous person.<\/p>\n

H\u00e9ma-Qu\u00e9bec issued a statement to CBC News saying tissue donation co-ordination teams are present seven days a week, with coverage during both day and evening shifts, but there was an issue.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe acknowledge that, on Saturday of the Easter weekend, a staffing challenge temporarily affected donor recommendation services only,\u201d the statement says, recognizing the situation was painful for families who wished to donate.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe situation is expected to be resolved shortly, with full capacity to be restored soon.\u201d<\/p>\n

H\u00e9ma-Qu\u00e9bec says it has not been taking tissue donations for the last four Saturdays, but tissue supplies remain sufficient. All patients requiring tissue grafts will receive them, and H\u00e9ma-Qu\u00e9bec continues to maintain its supply for clinical needs, the statement says.<\/p>\n

\u201cAgain, we extend our heartfelt condolences to the family affected,\u201d it says.<\/p>\n

\"manChris Cussen died over Easter weekend thinking his tissues could be donated, but H\u00e9ma-Qu\u00e9bec was not available to collect the donations. (Submitted by Debbie St-Martin)<\/p>\n

Wendy Sherry is a nurse clinician for organ and tissue donation at the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC), where Cussen died at age 54. <\/p>\n

She couldn\u2019t speak directly to Cussen\u2019s case, but generally speaking, she said there is a short window of 24 hours to collect tissue after circulation stops.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo the clock starts ticking right away,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Cussen, a father of three, was ineligible for organ donation largely due to the kidney condition that shortened his life. He still wanted to donate his tissue, St-Martin said.<\/p>\n

Donated tissues can help 20 people<\/p>\n

When someone dies, hospitals call H\u00e9ma-Qu\u00e9bec to alert them to a potential tissue donor.<\/p>\n

Tissues such as corneas, skin, bones, tendons, heart valves and arteries can be collected. A single tissue donor can help up to 20 people.<\/p>\n

A MUHC spokesperson said in an email that teams follow established protocols for contacting H\u00e9ma-Qu\u00e9bec, but declined to comment on any individual case.<\/p>\n

\"bonesA freeze-dried bag of bones during a visit at the H\u00e9ma-Qu\u00e9bec laboratory in Quebec City. This is among the tissues that can be donated. (Jacques Boissinot\/The Canadian Press)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are committed to supporting donation whenever possible and to working closely with our partners to ensure appropriate processes are followed,\u201d said spokesperson Evelyne Dufresne, encouraging patients or families with questions or concerns to contact the hospital\u2019s ombudsman.<\/p>\n

While the hospital declined to address this specific case, Sherry said this is not the first time H\u00e9ma-Qu\u00e9bec staff shortages have caused issues with donations.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had to call two families. I let them know that, unfortunately, tissue donation could not move forward despite their loved one being eligible because of a lack of staff,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

H\u00e9ma-Qu\u00e9bec says it tried to reach out to Cussen\u2019s family after failing to grant his final wishes. Regardless, St-Martin said not having staff available on Saturdays is not acceptable because people do not always die at convenient times.<\/p>\n

St-Martin said she feels sad and disappointed.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause that was something he wanted to do. He believed in that kind of stuff. So it hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to this article Estimated 3 minutes The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":605501,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194292],"tags":[49,48,2338],"class_list":["post-605500","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-montreal","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-montreal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/605500","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=605500"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/605500\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/605501"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=605500"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=605500"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=605500"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}