Two investigations have been launched trying to determine the cause of death of Kyle Losse.
The popular 14-year-old from Tsawwassen died suddenly last week after a serious brain injury.
After falling in the bathroom at his home on the evening of Jan. 21 while he was apparently vaping nicotine, Kyle was taken to Delta Hospital.
He was discharged after eight hours of monitoring and tests the following morning, but his condition soon worsened and he was rushed to BC Children’s Hospital where a CT scan showed a significant brain injury that doctors could not explain. He was taken off life support last Tuesday afternoon.
The BC Coroner’s Service and Fraser Health are both investigating.
“While we would not speculate on the time it might take to complete our investigation, I can tell you we are in the very early stages of our investigation,” said Andy Watson, a B.C. Coroners Service spokesperson.
According to the Coroners’ Service, upon conclusion of its investigation, a public report will be released, which will set out the coroner’s findings, including a cause of death and possibly recommendations to prevent future deaths.
Fraser Health confirmed Monday it has been communicating with the family and will continue to do so throughout its investigation.
“We are doing our own review, as we would with any unexpected death,” said spokesperson Tasleem Juma.
Juma said their patient safety review is an extensive process that will gather together the physicians, nurses, and staff involved, as well as other relevant health care professionals, to provide a full understanding of every moment of the patient’s journey under their care.
“This is a learning process in which we seek opportunities to improve the care we provide,” she said. “We take this process seriously. While there is no time frame, as we need to ensure we do a thorough review, we are trying to do the review as quickly as possible. Any actions coming out of our review will be shared with the family.”
As the family and community gathered at a celebration of life for Kyle Sunday afternoon parents Brian and Niki Losse were hopeful that answers would be forthcoming.
“We just want some answers. If there was a mistake, just admit that there was a mistake so that this is something that another child or parents never have to go through,” said Niki.
Brian added that the vape and the nicotine products were handed over to Delta police.
DPD public affairs coordinator Cris Leykauf said police are working closely with the B.C. Coroner’s Service who remains the lead on the file.
