Earlier this year, a 40-year-old woman died weeks after going from a long-term care facility in Halifax to a hospital with a pressure ulcer the size of a fist, and one of her family members says there are errors in the preliminary investigation report into the woman’s care.
Elizabeth Deveau, sister of Chrissy Dunnington, provided Global News with a copy of the report.
READ MORE: Halifax police investigate death of long-term care resident who had bedsore infection
“We were extremely disappointed in the contents of the report,” she said in an interview on Monday.
Deveau said that, along with omissions, the report inaccurately portrays the health issues Dunnington had and the kinds of treatment she was undergoing, among other things.
The family submitted a complaint to Nova Scotia’s Department of Health and Wellness, which spurred an investigation under the Protection for Persons in Care Act.
Halifax Regional Police announced on Friday that they’re investigating to see if the death was because of criminal negligence during her time at Park Stone Enhanced care, which is run by Shannex Inc.
None of Dunnington’s eight family members were interviewed for the report, Deveau said.
“So none of our input or any of our observations in terms of her care were included, which, from our perspective is a huge miss,” she said.
Randy Delorey, the province’s health minister, said in statement on Friday, “in accordance with our guidelines and to avoid interfering in the police investigation, we will put our investigation on hold.”
Deveau said she and her family members didn’t understand why the investigation was put on hold.
“We don’t want to taint that process,” said Bob Lafferty, the department’s investigation and compliance manager, in an afternoon interview. “We want to maintain the integrity of the criminal investigation,”
“First-time information tends to be more credible.”
He said he wouldn’t speak to the specifics of the case, but any potential inaccuracies in the report will be clarified later in the investigation.
Family members are often the first people interviewed, Lafferty added.
The investigation can result in the department issuing directives to the facility, he said, and where the investigation goes next will be determined based on the police’s department’s next steps.
Deveau said that someone from the department called a family member later on Monday to discuss the matter, and she’s feeling more hopeful that the investigation will continue at some point.