Winnipeg sepsis survivor reunited with ICU nurse who helped keep him alive 10 years ago

Mac Horsburgh awoke from an induced coma a decade ago in a state of delirium, struggling to think clearly.

One of his few vivid memories, he recalls, was the “amazing care” he received from an intensive care nurse at his hospital bedside.

“At a time when I was barely conscious, had 10 different tubes going in and out of me, I was very vulnerable. And she was a big part of keeping me alive.”

For the first time since he was fighting for his life from a harrowing experience with sepsis, Horsburgh was reunited with that nurse, Bernadette Warwaruk.

He publicly thanked her at an event at the Manitoba Legislative Building on Monday to proclaim Sept. 13 sepsis awareness day in the province.

“It’s so nice to see her again after 10 years of recovering,” Horsburgh said in an interview.

Life-threatening condition

Sepsis is a life-threatening condition where the body’s response to an infection injures its own tissues and organs.

In his case, it started with a cyst on his finger that was misdiagnosed as an inflammation and left untreated for days. The infection got into his bloodstream, weakened a vessel and created an aneurysm that ruptured. 

On Monday, Horsburgh and Warwaruk quickly recognized each other upon entering the legislature.

“I had no idea that an infection in my finger … could create so many problems for me that I would end up in a hospital, three weeks in an ICU, 10 days in a coma and having you look after me,” he told Warwaruk.

“My pleasure,” she said, placing her hand above her heart. “I’m honoured and humbled for sure.”

Since recovering from sepsis, Horsburgh has become a vocal advocate, warning people of the dangers of a condition he says many people don’t know about. He said his condition was never described to him as “sepsis” while he was in St. Boniface Hospital.

Some years ago, Horsburgh was speaking at a local nursing conference when he asked the crowd if “Bernadette” was there.

She wasn’t in attendance, but some of her colleagues were, and they alerted Warwaruk. It led to the reunion Monday.

As an ICU nurse, Warwaruk said she thinks about her patients all the time and wishes they fare well, but many times she doesn’t find out what happened.

“So, it’s full circle to hear that he’s doing well after all these years,” she said of Horsburgh, who was crowned a 2025 Canadian national pickleball champion in a 65-and-older category.

WATCH | A reunion a decade in the making:

Sepsis survivor reunited with nurse who supported his recovery

Mac Horsburgh, a Winnipeg sepsis survivor, was reunited Monday with the one nurse he still vividly remembers as he awakened from his induced coma a decade ago: Bernadette Warwaruk. They met at the Manitoba Legislative Building, as Sept. 13 was proclaimed sepsis awareness day in the province.

Horsburgh said Warwaruk was a constant at her bedside at a moment when, as his doctor described, his condition could change “hour to hour.”

“It’s their dedication that I really appreciate, and that dedication kept me alive.”

Renée Cable, Manitoba’s advanced education minister, understands the impact of sepsis personally.

She was taken to hospital last year, where she was slipping in and out of consciousness, fearing for her life.

“I didn’t know that I would feel quite so emotional today,” she told the crowd attending the sepsis awareness day ceremony.

“It is my immense honour and privilege to be here with other survivors.”

She said the experience changed her outlook on life.

“Most sepsis survivors will tell you that there is a moment where you know that death is a real potential, that one of the benefits is being able to look at life now through a different lens, that I have to make the moments count,” she said in an interview.

“I know that there are people counting on me to raise my voice about this issue.”

The idea for the proclamation came from Southdale constituent and fellow sepsis survivor Kim Dupasquier. She happened to find her MLA at her constituency office, where the two women met and shared their experiences of surviving sepsis.

The Canadian Sepsis Foundation says as many as one in 18 deaths in Canada involve sepsis, making it the 12th-leading cause of death nationally.

Cable is encouraging anybody with an infection to seek medical attention if their condition doesn’t improve or starts getting worse.