Seeking public healthcare often results in long waiting periods for patients. But how long can one wait in the most dire of situations? One such case of waiting too long at the Northern Regional Hospital has caused quite a stir. The patient had no visible wounds but is seen distraught complaining of severe chest pain, and no nurse or doctor in sight.
The 35 second video uploaded to Facebook captures a woman speaking in Spanish explaining that the other patients who have been waiting have asked multiple times for the woman to be attended to, as she complains of cardiac pain. The person recording goes on to say that they have informed them that there are other patients ahead of her and so she must wait. She also notes that the woman recently had a surgery and something may be wrong.
Today Jorge Polanco - the Deputy Director of Health Services - was at the NRH and here's what he told CTV-3:
The ministry of Health and Wellness issued a release today addressing the video stating, quote, "we take any allegations of patient neglect and staff misconduct very seriously. In response to the video and the allegations made, we have already commenced a thorough investigation to ascertain the facts surrounding this incident. The Ministry condemns any behavior that compromises patient care and safety."
