Finlay's Voice: A Mother's Fight to Fix Canada's ER Crisis with Hazel van der Werken

How long is too long to wait in an emergency room? For 16-year-old Finlay van der Werken, an eight-hour wait for a doctor proved fatal. In this powerful episode of The Gritty Nurse Podcast , host Amie Archibald-Varley sits down with Hazel van der Werken to share the heartbreaking story of her son, Finlay. After being rushed to an Ontario hospital with what began as a migraine, Finlay was triaged as an CTAS 2 (urgent case) but left in a "constant state of terror" for hours as his oxygen levels plummeted. By the time he was finally seen, he was in septic shock. Hazel discusses the systemic failures that led to Finlay's preventable death and why she is now channeled her grief into Finlay's Voice —a national movement demanding urgent reform in pediatric emergency care. In this episode, we dive into: Finlay's Story: The harrowing 8-hour wait at Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital. Sepsis Awareness: Identifying the "silent killer" that the WHO has named a global health priority. The Legislative Push: What is Finlay's Law , and how would it mandate maximum wait times and safe staffing ratios for children? Advocacy in Action: How parents and healthcare providers can support Finlay's Petition to ensure "no child dies waiting." This is a must-listen for nurses, healthcare advocates, and parents. It's time to move from complacency to action to protect our most vulnerable patients. About the Guest: Hazel van der Werken is the mother of Finlay and the co-founder of Finlay's Voice. She is currently advocating for a coroner's inquest and the passage of Finlay's Law in Ontario. Connect with The Gritty Nurse: Follow Amie Archibald-Varley for more episodes on healthcare reform and nursing advocacy.

You can listen to Finlay's Voice: A Mother's Fight to Fix Canada's ER Crisis with Hazel van der Werken online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Finlay's Voice: A Mother's Fight to Fix Canada's ER Crisis with Hazel van der Werken is an episode from The Gritty Nurse Podcast by Amie Archibald-Varley.

This episode is 49:19 long.

This episode was published on Jan 15, 2026.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from The Gritty Nurse Podcast when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.