Global News
March 1, 2017
Quote from article:
“I was moved from the emergency room proper on a gurney to the lobby and there were four other gurneys there with screens around them. I was there for a total of 36 hours,” Donaldson said.
“There were no call buttons. I remember getting some medication – that was the only water I was given. I just sort of lay there. After 30 hours, I managed to get off the gurney and into my scooter and rustled a toothbrush and a washcloth and used the public washroom to brush my teeth and wash my face.”
She says she spent 36 hours in the hospital lobby, next to the gift shop. In a cruel irony, Donaldson’s bed was set up beneath a plaque honouring her for the donations she had made to the hospital.
“I was lying under plaques that list people’s lifetime contributions to Eagle Ridge Hospital – and I was lying right under my name,” Donaldson said.
Donaldson’s story was discussed during question period in the legislature on Wednesday.
“Why does this government believe that it’s OK for vulnerable seniors to languish in the lobby, outside a hospital gift shop, while waiting for a bed?” NDP MLA Selina Robinson asked.
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