An investigation has been launched by Covenant Health after the alleged neglect of a patient under the care of the Edmonton General Hospital.
The family of Audry Chudyk says the elderly woman was staying in the long term care unit at the General Hospital when she was discovered by her husband in a life threatening state.
Chudyk's granddaughter Natassia said her grandfather found his wife unresponsive when he went to see her last month.
"My grandfather went to visit her on Valentine's Day," the younger Chudyk told CTV News, "He was horrified to find her left in bed with her mouth open, unconscious and unresponsive, [and] her roommate said she had been like that for days."
The family said when they confronted caregivers about their elderly family member's condition they were told there were no doctors on the ward, and that staff had been given no directive to take action.
The 67-year-old woman who suffers from paranoid schizophrenia was rushed across the city to the University of Alberta's Emergency Room; doctors there determined Chudyk had dangerously low blood pressure and was suffering from severe pneumonia.
Natassia Chudyk said her family is "outraged and disgusted" by how neglected their elderly family member was treated by staff at the General Hospital, and they want people to know about it so it doesn't happen to anyone else.
Covenant health is not commenting on the condition Mrs. Chudyk was in when discovered by her husband, saying only that doctors are called into the unit when needed and the two nurses on staff are responsible for the ward's 36 patients.
Vice President of Senior's Health Al Pierog said Covenant health takes all allegations relating to quality of care seriously.
"As an organization we take great pride in our work and in our quality of care," Pierog told CTV News.
The investigation into the matter is expected to take 4 to 6 weeks.
With files from Ashley Molnar
