Husband fundraising to cover cost of repatriating wife's remains to India for burial
Scaria Stephy Picture:gofundme
The devastated husband of a woman who died in Cork University Maternity Hospital after a caesarean section on Friday is fundraising to cover the cost of repatriating her to India for burial.
Stephy Scaria (nee Ouseph) had been living in Abbeyfeale Co Limerick with her husband and son. She was a nurse at University Hospital Kerry.
Baiju Scaria, her husband, said: “Tragically, my wife Stephy passed away on June 21 after a Caesarean in Cork University Hospital.”
Writing on a fundraising platform, he said: “We are absolutely devastated by Stephy’s passing”.
Mr Scaria said the family is “struggling to find the funds to cover the cost of her funeral and the repatriation of her remains to India”.
Up to Monday evening the fundraiser had raised €65,676.
The family is faced with very high funeral costs, and he said any donations will be used for “Stephy’s funeral service”.
The grieving husband said: “Please consider donating if you are able to do so. We are very grateful for every donation during this difficult time.”
Fr Tony Mullins, the parish priest in Abbeyfeale, said there is “incredible sadness” in the community.
He knew Stephy and her family well as they attended mass regularly. Their son made his first holy communion recently in the local church, he said.
“They were very much part of our parish here, I think they were living here about four years,” he said on Monday evening.
“They were regular at church on Sundays and weekdays, a lovely, lovely couple. There is incredible sadness for them and people are stunned really by what’s happened.” He described the pair as having “ a lovely presence in our community.” People around really want now to pray for them and pray with the family, he said.
Fr Mullins visited the bereaved husband and relatives on Sunday afternoon.
“They are, as you can imagine, devastated by the whole thing. We did pray with them, they’re a very faith-filled family,” he said.
“It’s difficult, very difficult. Their faith is hugely important to them so that’s all we can do with them. I know people generously responded to the fund-raising for what they need to take her back home.” He added that: “I think people feel helpless in this situation”.
Thomas Matthew, a healthcare co-worker of Stephy's in Kerry, said everyone who knew her is saddened.
Mr Matthew, a member of Migrant Nurses Ireland, met Stephy soon after she first came to Ireland about four and half years ago.
“She was a very good lady actually, she was very caring for the patients and everyone,” he said.
“We were very sad to hear about this.”
She treated everyone to the same high standards no matter who they were, he added.
“The main thing is she never complained, she was that kind of lady. If we had a shortage of staff or anything, she never complained about that,” he said.
Stephy was a great person to work with, he said.
She worked in a nursing home initially before moving to the hospital. She travelled from Abbeyfeale daily to Tralee for work.
A spokesman for CUMH confirmed a maternal death took place in recent days at the hospital.
“The coroner has been notified and in line with the HSE policy on all maternal death an external review will be undertaken,” he said on Monday.
“CUMH is providing bereavement support to the family at this very sad time.”
He added: “Hospital management and staff at CUMH wish to express their condolences and deepest sympathies to the family and friends of the deceased during this very difficult period.”
The Irish Malayali News outlet shared a tribute to Stephy, stating the Indian community around Abbeyfeale have been saddened by her sudden death and is shadowed by grief.
They said her parents had travelled to Ireland last week from Kerela in India. And they welcomed the generous donations to the GoFundMe, which stood at almost €66,000 by Monday evening.
There were 24 maternal deaths in Ireland between 2019 and 2021 according to the Confidential Maternal Death Enquiry in Ireland Report.
This analyses deaths during pregnancy and up to one year postnatally.
“In the context of a small cohort of patients, the evidence presented suggests a non-statistically significant increasing risk of maternal death with increasing maternal age and non-Irish ethnicity, but not with obesity,” the report found.
The figures included eight women who died by suicide and six women whose deaths were classified as direct maternal deaths, due to obstetric causes.
The data also included five women whose deaths were classified as indirect maternal deaths due to pre-existing conditions aggravated by pregnancy.
Inquests into maternal deaths in Ireland are mandatory under the Coroners (Amendment) Bill 2018.