THE Winnipeg Regional Health Authority will investigate the disappearance of a Winnipeg senior with dementia as a critical incident even though he was living at home and not in the care of a hospital or care home.
It’s believed to be the first time such a case has been probed as a critical incident, which is defined as an “unintended event that occurs when health services are provided to an individual and results in a consequence to him or her that is serious and undesired.” That includes death, disability, injury or harm. An example would be when a patient is operated on the wrong side or site.
Earl Moberg, 81, walked out of his River East home on Dec. 12, 2023, and hasn’t been seen since. His daughter confirmed his disappearance, and suspected death, will be treated as a critical incident after she wrote to provincial health authorities last month.
SUPPLIED Earl Moberg, 81, has been missing from the River East area since Dec. 12, 2023
“This sets a precedent now,” Britt Moberg said on Monday.
“There are a lot of people who are outpatients but critical incidents can happen to people living in the community, too. I hope it can save someone’s life.”
Moberg’s family tried unsuccessfully many times to persuade the health-care system to give him support services after he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in November 2019.
While Moberg’s condition worsened, he was placed on waiting lists for respite and home care. It meant his wife, who is also a senior, had to look after him full time and try to create a safety plan for him by herself.
The family finally did start to get some respite care, but there were problems with the transportation service which took him to it.
In the end, Moberg only received four hours of home care from the time of his diagnosis to his disappearance.
One week after his disappearance, the WRHA contacted Moberg’s wife to say he had qualified for placement in a long-term care facility and would go there after he was found.
On Monday, a WRHA spokeswoman said the initial review of the case had been completed.
“We will review it as a critical incident to better understand if there is anything that the system could do differently and what, if any improvements can be made to the way health-care providers work.
“Family will be invited to participate in the review process and any recommendations will be shared with them once the review is complete.”
JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS Britt Moberg, friends, family and the Bear Clan searched near the Red River and Chief Peguis Trail for the remains of her father Earl Morberg who disappeared late December when he wandered away from his home in Winnipeg, Sunday, May 5, 2024. Reporter: tyler
Erin Crawford, CEO of the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba, said it welcomes the critical incident review and hopes it leads to change.
“I hope coming out of this really tragic outcome, that Mr. Moberg’s family is dealing with, that there is some additional supports which come in for people trying to manage and support someone at home,” Crawford said.
“We know almost 20,000 Manitobans have dementia now and it will double soon. These families will need these supports in place. If a critical incident review can find these gaps, that would be very welcome.”
Moberg said she recently met with the provincial health and justice ministers to tell them about her dad’s case and to ask for more to be done for seniors in his situation.
She said she told the health minister that seniors with Alzheimer’s and dementia need to be able to get home care faster, while she told the justice minister there should be silver alerts sent out on cellphones as soon as it is known a senior needing help is missing.
“The federal government has stats which show there is a 50 per cent chance of injury or death after 12 hours,” she said.
“The Alzheimer Society (of Manitoba) says there are 19,000 people living in the community with Alzheimer’s and there will be 39,000 by 2050. We know there will be a need for more services.”
Earl Moberg put on a parka and walked away from his house in the late afternoon on a cold day. No trace of him has been found despite numerous searches.
His daughter said both the family and police had hoped that when river ice and snow melted in the spring, his body would be found.
“We were hoping with the snowbirds coming back, they might even find him in a shed, but he still hasn’t been located,” Britt Moberg said.
Earl Moberg, 81, has been missing from the River East area since Dec. 12, 2023 (Submitted)
“We’re hoping people can take a look at their properties.”
She hopes the WRHA makes the critical incident review public and that its recommendations will prevent other families from going through a similar tragedy.
“June 12 will be six months since he disappeared and Father’s Day is coming up,” she said.
“Initially, we were hoping to find him alive, but with his advanced dementia, we know that won’t happen. I’m pleased to see they have come to this decision to conduct a critical incident review.
“Now, we are hopeful to see what comes from this process.”
kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca
Kevin Rollason
Reporter
Kevin Rollason is a general assignment reporter at the Free Press. He graduated from Western University with a Masters of Journalism in 1985 and worked at the Winnipeg Sun until 1988, when he joined the Free Press. He has served as the Free Press’s city hall and law courts reporter and has won several awards, including a National Newspaper Award. Read more about Kevin.
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