Homeless Victoria man struggles to recover from surgery while living on street

After being discharged last week following gallbladder surgery, Donald Prevost said his only options were a shelter mat or the street.

Prevost has been living on Victoria's streets ever since he ran into health problems and could no longer work as a carpenter.

The 55-year-old member of the Namgis First Nation said he has been in and out of hospital more than a dozen times in recent months.

Last week he collapsed downtown and was taken by ambulance to Victoria General Hospital for emergency surgery.

But after six days, he said, the hospital released him.

"They were actually lost for words for what to do with me," he said.

Prevost ended up sleeping in Topaz Park and his daughter's van.

He's currently working with social workers for a more permanent solution. 

"It's not like the doctors are doing anything wrong, it's just the way our system is, I guess."

Not a unique case

Outreach worker Bernice Kamano with the Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness has been trying to help.

She said Prevost's story is not uncommon.

"I wish I could say that it was, but it's not. I've dealt with quite a few homeless Aboriginal people that have been in the hospital and have been released."

Homeless patients are particularly vulnerable, she said.

"There's no one to check up on them, no one to see whether or not they're taking their medication."

Kamano said she would like to see money in the health budget specifically for homeless patients.

"When homeless people leave the hospital ... [they] should have some supportive care," she said.

Lack of options

Mark Blandford, the director of clinical operations for Victoria General Hospital, said patients are never released without somewhere to go.

They are only released if their medical condition is appropriate for discharge, he added.

But he said the options are not always ideal.

"We'd love people to go into housing every single time, but on occasion it's just not possible. We regret that, but that's not something that we, from an acute care hospital perspective, can change."

With files from On the Island and Megan Thomas.