A 90-year-old Tsawwassen woman was cold, frightened and still bleeding when discharged from Delta Hospital in the middle of the night.
Fraser Health has issued an apology over the treatment Vivian Fitzpatrick, who is legally blind, received at the hospital earlier this week, but her daughter, Paddy Monroe, doesn't think that's good enough.
"They said it was because of a junior nurse. I don't buy it. This is more to do with cuts to our health care by Fraser Health as much as anything," Monroe told the Optimist.
Suffering from high blood pressure, Fitzpatrick's troubles began Monday evening when she was taken by ambulance to the hospital complaining of leg pain and a headache. She was in her pajamas at the time.
After seeing a doctor initially, Monroe explained, some time later her mother was told by a nurse she was discharged, without seeing a doctor again.
A 50-year resident of Tsawwassen, Fitzpatrick was wheeled into the emergency waiting area some time after midnight and was told a cab would be called for her.
"I didn't know what to do. I was cold and shivering. A nurse saw that I was cold and gave me a sheet to put around my shoulder. I didn't even have money for a cab and was all alone," Fitzpatrick explained.
The nurse also provided Fitzpatrick with a pair of socks, but she was still cold.
Monroe said she is the emergency contact, but wasn't told her mother was being put in the cab, shoeless in the rain, around 1:30 a.m. She said her mother's caregiver was called to make sure they could pay for the cab when her mother was dropped off.
Monroe said she never thought her mother would be released on her own in
the middle of the night, expecting to have at least been able to pick her up later in the morning.
Adding to the stress, Fitzpatrick noticed the sheet was covered in blood when she made it home.
She said she can't understand why she was released, noting her bed would have stayed empty as the ER didn't appear busy.
"I don't want to be critical of the staff at the hospital who are doing their best. The whole scenario that's happened is Fraser Health's problem. We know that the doctors and nurses are getting their directives from Fraser Health," Monroe said.
"It could have been worse and we're just appreciative right now she is OK. We just don't want it to happen to anybody else."
The health region would not discuss details of the case but provided a written statement by email: "This is a very unfortunate incident and Fraser Health has apologized to the family for any inconvenience and distress this may have caused. We can reassure the family and the public that we are taking this very seriously."
