Police escort veteran's daughter from facility after bedbug complaint
THE CANADIAN PRESS
TORONTO - Canada's largest veterans centre had police escort the daughter of an aged vet from the facility and warned her never to return on pain of arrest after she complained about bedbugs and a patient-safety issue.
Jackie Storrison said yesterday she was devastated and humiliated to be marched out of Sunnybrook Veterans Centre by security and issued a formal do-not trespass notice.
'I was paraded through Warrior's Hall like a common criminal in front of a large crowd to my great embarrassment,' Storrison said.
'I believe this to be a deliberate, calculated act of retribution against me for attempting to advocate for my father.' Storrison, 61, is among more than a dozen relatives with loved ones in the veterans centre who have spoken publicly about concerns of neglect and substandard care of the most frail residents at the 500-bed centre.
Those concerns prompted Minister of Veterans Affairs Steven Blaney to order an inspection and audit of the facility. Results are pending.
Storrison said she was forced to leave Thursday evening after she notified a group of nurses that she had spotted an elderly resident pushing a food table down a hallway.
'It was obvious this resident was at risk of falling and potential serious injury,' she said.
'No one moved.' A patient-care manager, accompanied by two security guards, later told Storrison the incident had occurred during a shift change and that she should hire a 24-hour attendant if she had any safety concerns for her dad.