Commlulon ctenqu,rct sur l•s rellttlons •ntNI lftl AufodtfOIK'J et certains Hrt!ICOS publics

Québec::

(Name, first name, address, birth date)

1 do solemnly declare that,

Statutory Declaration

01: You said that the first time was in - · last April.

A1: Yes~all asking me if I can escort my father. 1 asked first, if any of my two brothers that were ln .... could do it, or their sons, but none were available to escort my dad. Then I asked the question if my ticket was going to be paid because they didn't know If they were going to fly him out that day or if t~ng to send him out tomorrow. They told me that l'm supposed to pay for my ticket from --to - . but I told them then that I can't escort if they aren't going to pay for my ticket. So, the next thing that happened, it was in an hour I believe, 1 got another cal! and they told me that you're getting on the plane today. your father Is going by medevac. So they told me my ticket was g~e paid so that's the reason I goton the regulàr schedule with Air Creebec t~ ln ...... he was at the hospital. in the emergency section, he was able to speak to me and he was able to recognize me, at a very close distance. When I spoke to him he understood me, who I was. so far, nothi~rong but they told me he had an accident. He fell down and the reason why being sent to - was that he might have a concussion. on the head, he had a bruise right eye and also the left was also bruised, on the upper part of the eye, where the eyelids are. We were there at least 3-4 heurs and flnally the doctor said they dldn't find any fracture in the skull or anywhere when they did the scan. So, 1 was able to get him out and take him to the friendship centre where we stayed for the weekend but they wanted to send me up to - I told them I can't, l'd rather take him on Sunday where the flight would be able to take mea1rnie way to and they agreed with that. But r don't know why they put him on the plane with no escort. (silence)

So, we went back tcmllllll on Sunday on a regular flight. ln- we called for the wheelchair they use to take off passengers from the plane. But,"'wlie'ii"'Th guy brought it out, it was broken and my father had to go down the stairs, and I was holding him from behind so he wouldn't fall forward and the other guy, the agent, the Air Creebec agent was standing in front so we held him and he made it slowly to the ground getting off the plane and he got on to the wheelchair, the other one, and I was still on the plane and I came back to

~wing week, 1 get another call. 1 was told that he tell and that he's been medevacked to .... That's all l've been told. So, l was told to go on a plane again and when I got there, he was still at the hospital, at the . When I called the nurse on call, 1 told them that l'm here as an escort for my father. and to tell the doctor that I was now in .... , thought they would release him so that I could take care of him at the Espresso hotel but tli'at"a'ia'n'l happen. So the next day, the patient services told me I have to pack up and take my stuff with me so they were going to drive me to the hospltal. They didn't even mention about my father's stuff, you know, try to find it or to look for it so I could bring it along. Declarer signature __________________________ _

Declared before me, LJa,. ·,i; - Q.,d..-ée ~

1------on.__,__6Jl..l>.e~pt.i...;.·.....:l:..;;;;2-=..,-=2o=-..t1Bi..-L-------

Commission d'enquête sur les relations entre les Autochtones et certains services publics

La présente déclaration statutaire a été présentée par : téléphone rnuirrtor D en personne D à monsieur/madame

1------qui nous confirme nd bel et bien à ce qu'il/qu'elle nous a

rapporté(e) en date du ~'..b;:!2 2018.

Signature du déclarant: [YGÜw~ Date: 12.. &p~ . 2ol5

~1 -

P-1047

Commlnlon d'enquête sur les relations entre les Autochtonl'S etcert•lns set'tl/ces publics

Q "'b 131181 ue ecen When I got to the hospital. he wasn't himself. He diçjn't respond to me when I spoke to him in his ear and he was mumbling away, you know, looking in all directions, mumbling away and I couldn't even understand what he was saying. 1 told the doctor that he wasn't himself and the doctor said he didn't know what was wrong with him. He couldn't figure out. We were there until 2 o'clock and then the ambulance came in. We look him out around 3 o'clock, put him in the ambulance and we went to the airport. They did a medevac from - straight to -When we got to - we waited at least hait an hour for the driver to corne around and started to get cold in the plane, because it was still minus outside. When we got to the hospital, they had a room available for him to be taken there for a while to check him up. The doctor said: "I thlnk J know what is wrong with him", because he started coughing and putting his hand on the right side of his rib cage. We could tell he was in pain and the doctor said he's got pneumonia and lung infection so they gave him antlbiotics right away. 1 stayed until about 9:30 and they told me they were going to take care of him and I told them I would be back on the following day. So I dld, and the following day he was OK he was back to normal, talking to me, he was able to eat by himself. On Sunday, 1 came back to ~hey were going to take care of him until he gets completely well that they would be calling .... so a person can corne up to - to escort him back to -The point is that, there should have been escorts when he was on the plane. The other point that 1 don't really like about is, when we got served at the friendship centre, the meals that we get, anything after that, if you want to have something extra, you have to pay for it but there's only one serving that the Cree Health board pays. So, if l'm not full, if I need more, 1 have to pay the extra and that's what I don't agree about. There should be a higher amount than what they're serving. 1 think the meal rates are very low.

02: What is your father's date of birth?

A2: but on his medical card it say~ but he has a birth certificate stating that his date of birth

03: OK, so he has been sent by plane alone twice? To - and - ?

A3: Yes.

04: When l've met with alone in the hall at

A4: At - Ahhh ...

, she has also told me that your father has been kind of left

05: Yes, this is what she showed me on Facebook that your father has been left alone in the hall waiting for the Cree Patient Services to bring him to the - hotel and then that the -sent him back to hospital because he was alone with no escort.

AS: He started to get, what do you say when he was not himself, like delirious or something, when he started to have this infection, pneumonia. So, he got cranky and all that and that's what they told me, that's what the doctor told me: 'We couldn't leave him in the hotel with nobody to look after him". But 1 only went to Montreal on the following day. 1 wasn't there on the same day when they put him on the plane.

Q6: So, he was without any escort for about 24 hours?

Enquêteur

X

Déclarant

Commission d'enquête sur les relations entre les Autochtones et certains services publics

Commission d'enquit• sur les relations entre les Autochtones •tcertalns services publics

f"'\1 "'b EIH '<.ue ecnn A6: Yes, but you know, the day they took him, when they flew him to Montreal, when they called me, 1 told them to make my reservation on Air Inuit. 1 would have been there in Montreal around 7 that night so, he would have been without an escort, at least 4 to 5 hours but they told me that, when they called me back, Air Inuit doesn't fly today. Air Inuit flies every day from Montreal going up north and there's a flight from - that goes all the way down to Montreal. They fly every day, even Saturdays.

Q7: When your father need an escort, who's calling you?

A7: She called me and she also got in touch with me on Messenger.

08: So, it' s your - that called you, the two limes, to let you know that your father has been medevacked?

AB: Yes, and that he also needs an escort. She said: "your father needs an escort". The situation about the medevac is not known yet, what time or is it the following day or is it in the evening? 1 told her: "I will be able to go if they pay my ticket." They dld that to me before when my mother was still alive, back in 2005 1 believe. 1 escorted both of them and I had to fly to I had to pay my ticket to go to - then Cree health board paid my ticket from there to to escort my parents. They both had surgery on their eyes, 1 think it was cataract surgery, an w en they paid my return t~aid it up to - So, from - 1 had to pay for my ticket to corne back to ....... Tome, it shouldn't matterwhere the relative 1s. If the person is willing to escort, 1 think it should be paid from there, wherever the escort should be flying out from community.

09: Do you know if this is something that happens regularly that someone 1s sent alone on the plane or is there anything that is already organized to prevent it?

A9: No, this is the first time it has happened ta my father.

Q10: l'm wondering what can be done differently for those kinds of situations not happen again, do you have recommandations about that?

A10: They should make me chairperson for that (laughs), no. Weil, 1 know it it's impossible to predict when the medevac should be done. lt is really the doctor that makes that decision, when the patients should be flown down by medevac or what they call a shuttle because it doesn't have a wide window where the escort 1s, you know ... Like for me, since l'm here in - · if I was told that I would have to escort my dad and that I have to go to in ord~ on the plane or anything llke that to escort him, then I have to fly to first. Then, 1 would have to get a ride or stay ~ in - then take the flight the following day to get a ride from - to - and I don't get a refund on those tickets.

How do they determine, like, how long could they keep a patient if the patient is •. . unless, of course, it's very serious and there's no choice but to get the plane right away.

Q11 : That's kind of unpredictable?

A 11; Yes, because for me, 1 would have to go down the regular schedule or I would have to go straight to Montreal on Air Inuit, if my dad is sent to Montreal. 1 would have to go to Air Inuit, that way 1 get there the same day but at a later time.

012: Do you have to organize it by yourself?

A12: Yes.

x Yc(R' Enquêteur

X

Déclarant

Commission d'enquête sur les relations entre les Autochtones et certains services publics

Commlnlon d'cmquéte sur l~s relations eintn l.s Autochtanu eit certains services publks

f""\1 ~b 181181 '-<-ue ec ee

013: You have to pay for it by yourself and get a refund later on or the Cree Health Board is able to pay lt dlrectly?

A 13: They cou Id pay it because we have been asking about that when person. We asked them about our patients, if they could be put on Air Inuit because of the many stops that Air Creebec does to go to Montreal. Because, from here, it only takes about 2.5 hours to get to Montreal on Air Inuit and when we leave on Air Creebec around 1 o'clock, we get there around 7. Q14: Do they use Air Inuit services now?

A 14: 1 believe it' s hardly being used. l don't think they want to spend money on an organization that's not Cree. ln a situation like this, what they could do 1s, Cree Health Board, to get the shuttle to pick me up and fly me down to - where my dad would get on and flown to Val-d'Or or Montreal and I would be on the same plane with him. That coufd be done, but I belleve it's up to ... , 1 believe Cree Health Board can do that. 1 think it's only when the patient is net tao sick, but in a case where the patient is on a stretcher or something like that, it would not be possible. But is the patient is able to move around, you know, they should get that shuttle to corne up here just for me. (Laugh) Ah! Why not, hey?

015: So, from your experience, sometimes they pay you back the whole tees but some other times they don't.

A 15: No. They didn't pay my tare from to - when I escorted my mom and dad. They didn't refund me for that. But for this one, for the two times I went with my dad, they paid for my ticket all the way back to

016: Do you think that your father would have been treated differently if he was non-native?

A16: Yes, the services would have been much better.

017: How better would it be?

A 17: They would have worked on him right away. We waited for quite a number of hours before finally get the results. l'm also expecting another call, 1 think sometime next week or the week after regarding my dad. We want to put hlm in an elderly home where he can have the services for 24 hours a day.

018: Regarding those events, have you submitted a complaint?

A18: Yes.

019: To whom?

A 19: To the Cree Health Board, to the nurse who was looking after our dad in - and they tofd us they would look into it, to find out if there is a place where he can go.

Q20: When you said you have made a complaint to the Cree Health Board, was it at the Commissioner of complaints?

A20: No, it was to the nurse that was taking care of my dad in -

That's about it. The services should be more trying to get the escorts or Cree Health Board should hire people as escorts, even if they aren't relatives. Maybe 5 or 6. Sorne people can't do that for their eiders because they are working full time or they got kids to look after. lt's not easy.

Enquêteur

X

Déclarant

Commission d'enquête sur les relations entre les Autochtones et certains services publics