Cries, calls ignored and a coroner's investigation at Quebec care home where families allege neglect
CBC
Guy Maisonneuve held back tears the day he dropped his 95-year-old mother, Aline Besner, off at a Gatineau, Que., care home on Feb. 26.
Her room smelled like urine, staff wouldn't make eye contact and no one would help transfer Besner into bed, he says. That was just within the first few days on the second floor of Villa des Brises.
Located in the private facility managed by Mandala Santé, the floor is partly run by the regional health authority, the Centre intégré de santé et des services sociaux de l'Outaouais (CISSSO).
The floor is designed as a temporary residence for post-acute care and a place for those who may need rehabilitation before returning home or getting transferred to a long-term placement.
"From the moment I stepped into the villa, I was filled with dread, absolute dread," said Maisonneuve, sitting at his kitchen table, steps away from the room where he hoped his mother would spend her final days, at home.
But after being diagnosed with advanced dementia at the Wakefield hospital, Besner moved into the Villa des Brises transitional unit while waiting for a permanent placement at a long-term care facility.
A bad first impression soon turned into major concern for Besner's safety when Maisonneuve was told by a neighbouring resident his mom was having falls, didn't have access to drinking water, wasn't being bathed regularly and that her emergency call button would either be out of reach or go unanswered for hours.
On April 14, Besner died in a hospital bed, surrounded by her family. Quebec's coroner's office is investigating her death.
More families and former residents are coming forward, some claiming abuse and "incompetence" on the transitional floor.
The care home would not comment on specific events. Mandala Santé and the regional health authority both declined repeated requests for an interview.
"Every fibre of our being was screaming, get her out of there. And that's what she would say: just get me out, take me out of here," said Maisonneuve's wife, Shelley Langlois.
"I will regret it for the rest of my life that I didn't take her out," added Maisonneuve.
Connecting with other residents, Maisonneuve and Langlois say they realized Besner wasn't the only one experiencing what they call neglect.
The night of April 11, Besner cried out for help for nearly six hours, says Sharon Nobert, her former neighbour at the facility.
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