Miguel Precioso spent the last 15 days in a makeshift hospital room at Royal University Hospital (RUH) in Saskatoon suffering multiple brain bleeds waiting to see a doctor..Amanda Precioso, Miguel’s wife, reached out to the Western Standard about the care her husband received in the three different hospitals..Since October 2, Miguel has been in a hospital bed in the hallway at RUH, with no medical supplies or devices, such as oxygen..It all started when Miguel went for a ride on his quad and it flipped over. He hit his head hard and his wife took him to Tisdale Hospital, about 215 km northeast of Saskatoon.. Miguel Precioso 2 .Tisdale Hospital did several tests and scans, leading them to find a single brain bleed..On October 1, Victoria Hospital in Prince Albert, about 135 km southeast of Tisdale, admitted Miguel for further testing and observation as they found a second brain bleed..On October 2, the day doctor disagreed with the night doctor on Miguel’s condition, saying it was a “psychotic episode” and he needed to go on anti-psychotic medications, while also seeking mental health support..“The doctor that came in in the morning did not feel the same. He stated he was not of the same opinion. He stated Miguel had a ‘psychotic episode’ and needed to go on anti-psychotic medications, increase his current antidepressants by 50%, and needed to see mental health this week,” said Amanda..READ MORE Manitoba woman chooses assisted suicide, claiming lack of healthcare.Amanda asked the day doctor to not discharge him as the night doctor did not think it was a mental health issue. However, Miguel was discharged..As they were leaving, a nurse told Amanda to “take him to Saskatoon and get help.”.Amanda took her husband to the RUH, where he was admitted, but spent five days in the emergency room waiting for a hospital bed..On October 7, RUH did another CT and MRI where they found five brain bleeds..On October 6, RUH tried to discharge Miguel while his brain bleeds remained “unstable” and told Amanda that if she did not take him, they would have to pay for him to stay..“He was admitted to the hospital on October 2. October 6 they wanted to discharge him while his bleeds were unstable and we were even threatened that if we wouldn’t leave, we would be charged personally for the bed and care,” said Amanda..After discussing the situation with the doctor, he apologized and kept Miguel in the hospital, while ordering an MRI. It took until October 14 to get the MRI..“After further refusal, the doctor apologized and understood the situation of why we needed further tests and the risk of him being taken out of the hospital. On October 7 more psychology testing was requested and on October 8 an MRI for back/spine injury was requested by doctor with worsening injury symptoms in the back,” said Amanda.. Miguel Precioso 3 .Miguel has been waiting for a second psychiatrist to sign off that he does not have a mental health problem so they can do testing for rare disorder tests..The rare tests cannot be done until a second sign off because of the cost..“We were advised by neurosurgeon as well as internal medicine they cannot move forward with other rare disorder tests until psychology comes for the second time and decides it's psychological or not,” said Amanda..Amanda is extremely frustrated with the care her husband received at RUH..“It blows my mind we were threatened if we don’t leave, we would have to pay and now we are a week of being in here since with no evaluation that allows us to move forward,” said Amanda..“We are put in a hallway room that is a four-by-10 space. This bed space is not even humane! People in solitary confinement have more space, natural light. This space isn’t even big enough for a bed and a chair. I have been staying with him and sitting on his bed for the past three days.”.READ MORE 3.3% of all Canadian deaths were doctor assisted suicide.“So because of this closet-sized space and the situation we are in, his pain, brain injury and mental state, now my husband is saying things like ‘if you leave I am just going to take this curtain in the bathroom and hang myself’ and ‘if they make me stay another day I am requesting an extension cord,’” said Amanda. .“It isn’t acceptable to treat animals like this and yet it is the situation we find ourselves in.”.Amanda contacted the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) about her husband's care, and SHA did call her Monday morning telling her they do not know why she contacted them and said they would refer the matter to the ward manager where Miguel is in the hospital..After the Western Standard contacted the SHA and RUH, the ward manager went to Amanda to inform her that Miguel has the option of going home or back to the Tisdale Hospital, however, no more testing will be done there as they do not have the capability..NDP Leader Carla Beck commented on the Precioso's hallway medicine situation..“Saskatchewan is the birthplace of our national healthcare system. I am incredibly proud of that fact, but it has become clear this Sask Party government has broken our system. I can’t imagine the stress of bringing in a loved one to a hospital with a life-threatening injury only to have to wait days in a hallway for care. This hallway medicine needs to stop now," said Beck..Beck said the healthcare system is in a crisis and the provincial government needs to become creative in how it can fill in the gaps.."We’re in a crisis. Rather than pretending it doesn’t exist, we need provincial leaders to work night and day on solutions. Our healthcare workers certainly are, it’s about time we have our politicians do the same. Whether that is approaching recently retired healthcare staff to help fill part-time positions, increasing the number of nurse practitioners, or freeing up emergency room space by prioritizing primary care, we need to take action. The Sask Party’s lack of action on hallway medicine is frankly unacceptable," said Beck.
