A disturbing video shows a man leaving a hospital in Canada after doctors assumed he was “faking” severe pain in his leg.
David Pontone, 45, is seen on all fours crawling out of Toronto’s Humber River Hospital after his premature discharge – because employees considered his psychological problem, according to CBC News.
“They thought I was pretending because I was bipolar,” Pontone told CBC about the April 2018 incident. The surveillance footage was just released after the announcer got it.
“There are no words to describe what I went through that night.”
While in hospital, Pontone – who was later diagnosed with a rare nervous disorder – told the team that he is taking medication for bipolar disorder, but has been stable for seven years.
But revealing his mental health history prompted a doctor to order an MRI scan and refer him to a psychiatrist on call, CBC News reported.
Although Pontone complained of agonizing physical pain, the psychiatrist wrote that “anxiety” was his most dominant symptom, according to medical records obtained by the Canadian broadcaster.
Another note in the hospital records states that Pontone’s visit was due to his “bipolar” and does not even mention his difficulty walking.
When the MRI did not reveal any unusual results, a psychiatrist discharged Pontone – forcing him to crawl out of the hospital on his hands and knees.
“The pain was unbearable,” said Pontone. “Being able to walk correctly was impossible.”
At some points in the newly obtained footage, Pontone is shown struggling on the floor while a nurse stands beside him.
“The nurse said, ‘You are a big boy! You are strong! Come on, big boy, get up! ‘”Said Pontone. “I was angry. I felt totally helpless. ”
Pontone took about 20 minutes to get to the exit and a security guard helped him into a taxi.
An ambulance later took him to Toronto Western Hospital, where a neurologist diagnosed him with Guillain-Barré Syndrome, a disorder in which a person’s immune system attacks his nerves.
Medical professionals often neglect serious physical health problems in people with mental illness, experts said.
“We are failing this population miserably,” said Dr. Vicky Stergiopoulos, a psychiatrist and chief physician at the Center for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto. “[The system] it has flaws and we need to do a better job of seeing people as human beings. “
Toronto’s chief nursing executive at Humber River Hospital, Vanessa Burkoski, later apologized, Pontone’s family told the agency.
Hospital spokesman Joe Gorman sent a statement saying the hospital was “deeply disturbed” by the incident and that the staff involved “were treated accordingly”.