Dislocated hip, dislocated care

Re: “Dislocated hip means 11-hour wait for a hospital” (Montreal Gazette, Oct. 22)

Trevor Garland of Roxboro waited 11 hours for an ambulance after a recent hip dislocation. We wish him a speedy recovery.

In my father’s case, he fell at a local golf course, dislocating his 15-year-old artificial hip, and was left lying out in the blazing sun for almost two hours. The ambulance that had been called, we were told, was no longer available.

He was eventually taken to the emergency room at the Lakeshore Hospital, where he waited another five hours before a doctor “popped” his hip back into place.

He left the hospital without a cane or wheelchair — just the helping hands of family members — and was given no instructions other than “come back in a few days and take some Tylenol for the pain.”

Three days later, while bending over to put on a pair of socks, the hip popped out again, and he was taken to the Lakeshore by ambulance in a repeat of his first visit.

Then, on Father’s Day, his hip popped out for the third time in eight days while he was drying off after a shower. Back to the Lakeshore by ambulance.

This time he refused to be sent home as he could no longer bear the pain and uncertainty of his now vulnerable hip. He ended up waiting another two weeks at the hospital for a hip replacement.

My father is an army veteran and retiree who used to play golf, baseball, football and swim. Now he has been left with limited mobility and can no longer do those activities.

It is unbelievable that such episodes can occur in this day and age. We have learned the hard way not to assume we will receive the required attention during medical crises. Instead we must keep insisting for action.

Nathalie Allard, Westmount