Three Westmount sisters started the year feeling frustrated after their 92-year-old father spent 72 hours in a hospital emergency room corridor in excruciating pain.
They hope other families don’t go through the same ordeal.
Valerie Schwartz and her two sisters spent New Year’s Day doing their best to help their father, Earl, after he suffered a serious injury. Schwartz said she couldn’t move or get out of bed and needed an ambulance.
“He was screaming in agony and has a pretty high pain tolerance; he is not one to complain,” she said.
The ambulance took him to the general hospital in Montreal, where her father’s doctor works. The doctors determined that the man had a compression fracture of the vertebrae as a result of osteoporosis. He was then placed on a gurney in a corridor near the stairwell door, where he spent the next three days directly under light.
“People are in and out, sleeping on the floor,” Schwartz said, describing the Kafkaesque scene.
Lying directly under the light without rest for three days meant Earl couldn’t sleep properly and he became very agitated.
“He became delirious,” Schwartz said. “The three days he was there aged him about five years.
Schwartz and her two sisters stayed by their father’s side throughout the ordeal, helping with toilet duties because there were no orderlies or nurses to help, she said.
After about 48 hours of nothing happening, the daughters consider leaving.
“At one point we were just like, ‘let’s just go home,'” Schwartz said. “We decided not to because if you leave, you lose your place in line.”
She has no complaints about the hospital staff, who she says are doing their best.
“They are so over the top, very polite, very professional,” she said. “They were trying.”
The McGill University Health Center (MUHC) that runs the Montreal General Center apologized for the state of care for the man.
“We are very sorry to learn of this patient’s experience. We understand how this situation can be frustrating and we encourage the patient and/or family to contact our ombudsman if they wish to make a formal complaint,” media relations adviser Rebecca Burns said.
The hospital center said it has seen emergency rooms exceed capacity in recent months.
“High emergency department (ED) volumes have been seen across the health system, a situation caused by a number of factors, including three viruses circulating at once,” Burns said, adding that “with fewer beds than we had before 2015. , ED patients can sometimes experience delays when waiting to be admitted to a floor.”
Montreal General Hospital. (Daniel J. Rowe/CTV News)
The hospital also said that seriously ill patients are treated first and all are triaged upon arrival at the ward, resulting in longer waiting times for other patients.
After three days, Earl was admitted to a private room that was quiet and allowed him to rest.
“He’s got to catch up on his sleep, but it’s taking a toll,” Schwartz said. “He’s better, but he’s still a little confused.”
He returned home Friday on some pain meds and will see his doctor to determine routine care. Schwartz said doctors have decided surgery is not the best option at this time.
However, the family will now have to organize care for him as his wife Stefan, 85, broke her hip three weeks ago and can only help in a limited capacity.
Earl Schwartz, 92, and his wife, Stefan, 85, suffered injuries that severely limited their mobility over the holidays. They will have to decide how to take care of each other in the coming months. SOURCE: Valerie Schwartz
Dr. Arianne Murray of the Montreal Regional Department of General Medicine (RGMD) said patients should try to avoid emergency rooms if possible by calling 811, seeing a pharmacist or seeing specialized care such as an optometrist for an eye problem. For those with a family doctor, Murray suggested calling the clinic.
Schwartz said 811 was not an option because her father’s condition required immediate medical attention.
“He was in agony, screaming in pain,” she said.
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