Vitaliy Chovnyk, the husband of Ukrainian singer Iryna Fedyshyn, shared details in a November 10 Facebook post regarding the circumstances of their daughter's death at 35 weeks of pregnancy, stating that a Ukrainian Ministry of Health commission officially found seven violations in the medical care provided to his wife. According to him, the family is determined to uncover the truth about what happened on the night of the tragedy at a Lviv hospital and will not stop until they receive answers from the management of the medical facility.
Chronology of a Tragic Night
Chovnyk detailed the sequence of events. He stated that around 5:30 PM, Iryna experienced stomach pain; she wrote to her lead pregnancy doctor, Khrystyna Melnyk, who advised taking homeopathic remedies, lying down, and reporting back in an hour. By 10:15 PM, the pain had not subsided, and when Iryna asked if she could be examined by the doctor on duty, Melnyk recommended calling Olha Koval, a doctor who had previously delivered Fedyshyn's babies. According to the husband, Koval offered to come herself, but after the examination stated she saw nothing critical—while, according to Chovnyk, failing to check blood pressure or the baby's heartbeat. Later, Koval herself operated on Iryna, after which, according to Chovnyk, she announced in the ward that she had decided to resign; Saint Anne's Hospital officially announced the doctor's resignation on November 8.
Questions Regarding Documents and Staff
At the maternity hospital, according to Chovnyk, they waited about an hour for an ultrasound; during the examination, he showed the screen via video call to another doctor, who immediately suspected placental abruption. The husband also questioned the certification of the doctor who performed the ultrasound. Addressing the director of Saint Anne's Hospital, Svitlana Havryliuk, he asked for an explanation of who filled out the documents that night: they stated that Iryna was transported on a gurney, whereas, according to him, she walked up the stairs to the examination by herself. Chovnyk discussed night shifts and the availability of narrow specialists—who, he claims, are called by phone when necessary—with Oleh Samchuk, General Director of the First Medical Association of Lviv.
Seven Violations According to the Ministry of Health Commission
Chovnyk listed seven violations that he claims were recorded by the Ministry of Health commission, emphasizing that the commission officially established that the medical care provided to Iryna did not meet standards and protocols. He also raised the issue of potential criminal liability and asked his subscribers for their opinion on whether the family should pursue such a review of the case.
The Family's Position: Truth, Not Vengeance
At the same time, Fedyshyn's husband emphasized that he is not seeking revenge and does not want to devalue the work of Ukrainian medical professionals. "I do not want revenge. I want the truth. I do not want anyone to be punished just because I am in pain," he wrote, adding that he does not intend to cross out the work of thousands of doctors. In his post, he also recalled that for nearly a month since the moment of the tragedy, his life, like his family's life, has been "divided into 'before' and 'after'".
