WRHA disputes daughter’s claim mom would be sent to shelter

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This article was published 03/03/2023 (1264 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Regional Health authority says there was never a plan to send an 83-year-old hospital patient with kidney and heart issues to the Main Street Project shelter.

“While we can’t get into too much detail as a result of patient privacy legislation, we can say this patient was not homeless and there was never any plan or intent to send them to a shelter,” a spokesman said, one day after the Free Press reported about the case of retired nurse Philomina Zachariah, who also has dementia.

“Families and caregivers of aging loved ones face difficult decisions and circumstances when preparing to leave the hospital setting that can be compounded by stress, relationship dynamics and even uncertainty of basic needs,” a WRHA spokesperson said.

The WRHA said its planning for continued care involves a team of clinical specialists who support the transition.

“Our care teams always do their best to approach every situation with empathy and compassion and work with families to come to a resolution that provides the safest and most appropriate options, recognizing that extending stays in hospital for people who are deemed to medically not require hospital care ultimately creates delays for patients who do need hospital care and are waiting for admission.”

On Thursday, the woman’s daughter Marilyn Zachariah appeared at a news conference held by the NDP to discuss how her mother was handled by the health-care system.

Zachariah said she had been told her mother would be discharged to the shelter from Victoria Hospital during her second recent stay there, which began Jan. 1.

Initially, the family was told to prepare for their mother’s death, but she rallied and was deemed able to go home.

Zachariah said she told officials she wasn’t capable of caring for her mom at home without adequate home care, but was told Philomina wasn’t eligible to go to a care home.

“It’s not about your medical ability, it’s about your functional ability,” Zachariah said she was told. Her mom could walk with a walker and wasn’t incontinent.

Zachariah said Thursday she had told officials she needed time to prepare.

“Their response was: ‘If you don’t give us an address, we will discharge her to the Main Street Project’… I was in disbelief.”

The family did take her home a few days later, and Philomina was eventually transferred to Riverview Health Centre.

“She’s receiving the care she needs and deserves,” her daughter said.

—Staff