Josh Wakely died of flesh-eating disease. Doctors misdiagnosed his condition 3 times, his widow claims

A widow living in Lake Country, B.C., has filed a lawsuit claiming her husband's strep infection was misdiagnosed three times in the emergency room before he died of necrotizing fasciitis also known as flesh-eating disease nearly two years ago.

Britney Stewart, 33, claims none of the physicians who saw her husband during three separate visits toFort St. John Hospital ordered tests that could've diagnosed theinfection in February 2020.

Josh Wakely died within days at the age of 40. Heleftbehind Stewart and their then-two-year-old son.

"It's been definitely the most difficult two years of our lives," Stewart said, speaking in an interview from her home in Lake Country. "[And] the one person that is going to make it all better is the one that is gone."

None of Stewart's claims has been proven.Neither thephysicians nor Northern Health have filed a response in court.

3 trips to ER

Wakely wasin the Fort St. John area for work before his death.

Stewart's claimsaid her husbandfirst visited the ER for "a severe sore throat" before midnight on Feb. 24, 2020. Doctors didn't swab Wakely's throat or run a rapid test for strep, according to the lawsuit filed Tuesday in B.C. Supreme Court.

Theytreated Wakelywith Tylenol and fluids for suspected tonsillitis, then sent himhome.

The documents saidparamedics took Wakelyback to hospital with back spasms on Feb. 26.

"He had taken numerous medications that day, including 12 tablets of Robaxacet, seven tablets of Advil, seven tablets of Motrin, and one tablet of Tylenol with codeine but still rated his pain as 10/10," the claim read.

Wakely was sent home again a few hours laterwith Tylenol 3s and a diagnosisof muscle spasms and sacroiliitis.

He was back inthe ERfor thethird day in a row onFeb. 27.

He had"pain, swelling and loss of sensation" radiating up his arm from his right hand and wrist, according to the claim. He was diagnosed with hand-arm vibration syndrome due to his workas a welder and senthome with advice to take Advil and avoid using vibration tools.

Physicians who saw Wakely during his second and third visits are accused of failing to order lab tests or call for bloodwork. Stewart claimedthey didn't reference his previous visitseither.

After Wakely was discharged a third time, Stewart made the 2,000-kilometre round trip to bring him hometo the Okanagan.

Reached Thursday, aspokesperson for Northern Health said the authority couldn't comment.

"At this time,NorthernHealthhas not been served regarding this statement of claim. NH cannot comment further, as the litigation process is underway," it said in anemail.

Couple met 6 years earlier

Stewart first metWakelyon a worksitein the area around Buckinghorse, B.C., in 2014. She was the welder's helper assigned to Wakely'sjob and wasn't initially looking fora relationship.

"It definitely started as a friendship, but he told me later,'The second I saw you ... I knew that I was going to marry you.'"

The couple bought a home together in Lake Country in 2016. Theywelcomed their son, Mason, the following year.

"Mason was just the best thing that ever happened to him. Hewas so proud to be a dad," said Stewart, adding that the couple had planned to have more children.

"That's probably one of the things that I miss the most, is watching their relationship ... Like, nothing else existed," she said.

"I think it's hard for anyone to lose a spouse, but it's incredibly difficult for a young family to lose one of the parents, just because when you lose them, you're also losing all of the hopes and dreams that you had as a family ...we lost that the day that we lost Josh."

Strep diagnosed by different hospital in Kelowna

The claim said paramedics took WakelytoKelowna General Hospital the day after Stewart brought him home.

Lab work confirmed a strep A infection, according to the lawsuit.Thebacteria can cause a range of diseases, ranging from minor cases of strep throat to life-threatening illnesses.

Necrotizing fasciitiscan be caused by group A strep bacteria. It spreads quickly and is oftendifficult to diagnose because other infections can lead to similar symptoms, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The centre said quick treatment is "key,"but as many as onein threepeople with the illness stilldie.

Wakely had surgery to try and remove the dead tissue, but the claim said hedied just before 1:30 a.m. on March 2.

Stewart is suing four physicians and Northern Health for negligence, seeking compensation under the Family Compensation Act on behalf of herself, her son and her in-laws.

"Mr. Wakely submitted to the medical care, treatment and professional services of the defendants," read the claim. "By reason of the negligence of the defendants ... Mr. Wakely died."