The family of a woman who was paralyzed after a stroke are demanding answers as to why they waited more than an hour for an ambulance to take her to hospital. Former New Westminster councilor Lorrie Williams has been in the Royal Columbian Hospital since August 6. Her brother Alan Greenwood is angry at the delay in taking her to hospital which he believes is responsible for her partial paralysis. “Next to a stroke is the thing you are [have] to act quickly and there are brain cells dying every second,” he said. “Now she’s in a hospital bed and she’s partially paralyzed and we don’t know the outcome.” Alan Greenwood wants answers from PK EMS and the province about why it took more than an hour for an ambulance to respond to his sister’s stroke. (Nick Allan/CBC) Williams was with a friend, who is a retired doctor, when she suffered the stroke. CBC News spoke with the friend, who did not want to be interviewed on camera, but provided details about how the events unfolded. The friend, who lived with Williams, says the retired councilwoman was sitting on the couch when the friend noticed her speech was slurred. When she turned back, the friend saw that Williams’ face had fallen and her body was swaying to the left, so she grabbed her shoulders and said, “Lori, you’re having a stroke.” The friend immediately called 911. For the next hour and a half, Williams lay on the floor as the friend and two neighbors tried to comfort her and manage her symptoms. The friend says they called 911 repeatedly to get an ambulance and were told it was on its way. In a statement emailed to CBC News, BC Emergency Health Services (EHS) confirmed they received a call at 8:09 p.m. to respond to a patient in New Westminster in the 400-block of Kelly Street, where Williams lives. He said at the time, multiple paramedics were responding to other medical emergencies in the area and the first ambulance that became available was dispatched. He also said that during the response period, BC EHS was notified that the patient’s condition had changed and the call priority was upgraded. According to EHS, paramedics arrived within four minutes of this upgrade and were on scene at 9:18 p.m.
EHS apologizes for the delay
Greenwood says his sister’s boyfriend and neighbors considered taking her to Royal Columbian Hospital themselves, which is a few blocks from Williams’ home, but hoped an ambulance would arrive soon. He says paramedics finally arrived and took his sister to Royal Columbian Hospital for surgery two hours after the initial 911 call. “I don’t blame the ambulance people here,” Greenwood said. “There’s something wrong with the system at this point… How come when you really need an ambulance, it takes two hours to get one now?” EHS says it is reviewing its response to the call. “We know it’s stressful when someone who needs an ambulance is waiting for one, and we apologize to the patient and their family for the delay,” their statement said.
The former councilor remains in hospital
Before her stroke, Williams was an active 81-year-old. She lived independently and took care of her dogs and cats. When her house caught fire in the early morning hours of July 14, Greenwood says his sister jumped out of bed, ran out into the yard and began fighting the fire herself with a garden hose. A former councilor in New Westminster for 16 years, Williams remains well known and popular in the community. In 2019, he was named New Westminster Citizen of the Year. “She had everything going on and she was traveling and she had her pets and a wide range of friends and [she] she was very active in the community,” her brother said. Lori Williams was a New Westminster city councilwoman for 16 years and was active in the community until her stroke in August. (Submitted by Allan Greenwood) Williams is still in the hospital, and while her condition has improved enough to sit up in bed, Greenwood says she may use a wheelchair for the rest of her life. “It looks like she needs help for the rest of her life and that’s probably a direct result of the delay in going to hospital,” he said.
The Union says delays are due to staff shortages
Greenwood says it is well known that rapid medical intervention is critical for stroke patients. TV commercials refer to the acronym QUICKLY. to remind people of symptoms that should trigger a 911 call. “I’m angry at the people who are paid to look after the system, who are not doing their jobs, who have allowed it to get to this state,” he said. An ambulance is pictured in downtown Vancouver, BC on Monday June 27th. (Ben Nelms/CBC) The union that represents ambulance paramedics in BC has been sounding the alarm about staff shortages for years. “It’s really concerning to hear about these delays and we continue to hear about them and especially in a life-threatening emergency like this when someone had to wait that long at the time they needed, that’s unacceptable,” said Troy Clifford. , president of BC Ambulance and Emergency Dispatchers He says the staffing shortages are largely the result of pay disparities between paramedics and other public safety positions such as police, fire and health. In 2016, BC Emergency Health Services set a goal to respond to the most critical patients in Metro Vancouver within nine minutes at least 75 percent of the time by 2020. CBC News reached out to the Department of Health to ask why ambulance delays continue to exceed response targets. Despite having more than 48 hours’ notice to respond, the ministry did not respond in time for publication, citing a media blackout due to the Queen’s death. Meanwhile, Greenwood says his sister’s experience has completely shaken his confidence in emergency ambulance services. “This is obviously a new ball game where the ambulance is not going to be there and you have to take matters into your own hands and that’s certainly what I would do if this situation came up again.”
