Dear Editor,
I am an 80-year-old woman, recovering from a broken arm and have lived in Port for 40 years. After my experience this past month, we will surely move away.
My husband was having a health problem, so we went to emergency. Because he has dementia, I needed to be with him, but they barred me at the door. It was a cold, rainy night. The staff would not let me sit where it was warm. The only place to sit while I waited was a chair by the open door and soon I was shaking with the cold.
When I asked if I could use the bathroom, I was told “sure, walk around to the other end of the hospital to admitting.” It was black, cold, pouring rain, and snow and ice covered the ground. There is no sidewalk and no lights. I feared I would fall and break the other arm so could not go to the bathroom.
I finally went and sat in the truck. After three more hours I went and checked up on my husband. No one had seen him yet. I insisted on seeing him and they physically stopped me and then they threatened to phone the RCMP.
We finally got out around midnight after seven hours. We should have stayed home, taken an aspirin and saved ourselves seven hours of much pain.
They told me this is hospital rules. We understand COVID and the need to be careful, but we felt they treated us coldheartedly and insensitively, close to being downright callous. In contrast, the night security guard was more than kind and gentle and sweet.
Too bad he wasn’t the greeter at the door.
Jean Jantzen,
Port Alberni