CARMICHAEL, Calif. — A man who went to the hospital after a fall was left lying on the ground for more than an hour, family members told ABC10.
Family members said 61-year-old Michael Sanders, a local veteran, fell in his yard and was taken to Mercy San Juan Medical Center for help Monday. Sanders was left unable to bend his upper torso and workers weren't able to get him into a wheelchair.
Since the hospital didn't have a bed available, he was placed on the ground outside the hospital, the family said. He laid there for more than an hour.
"My mom said it was closer to two hours. There was EMTs there. They could have brought a stretcher or something to put under him. He did not need to be on the cement floor,” said Mindy Estrada, Sanders' daughter.
ABC10 reached out to Dignity Health regarding the incident. A spokesperson said the incident is under investigation and noted that the video of the patient on the ground was a "brief snapshot" of the patient's hours-long encounter in the emergency room.
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"The care and safety of our patients is always our top priority, and we take this matter very seriously. We are in the process of conducting a thorough investigation of the matter. The video shown depicts a brief snapshot of what was, in reality, several hours of the patient's encounter in our emergency room. Patient privacy laws prevent us from providing specific information about this patient's care, but we regret that this patient did not have a good experience," Dignity Health told ABC10 in a statement.
However, Estrada said the pain her family went through can't be eased by an apology. She said her father has several ailments, including heart trouble, and she’s concerned about how the stress of that hospital visit will impact him going forward.
"I want the public to know what happened. I want other people to think twice before they bring their loved ones to that hospital," Estrada said.
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