PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, USA – FEBRUARY 20, 2025 Elderly woman was brought to a care facility after paramedics had to cut her out of her wheelchair during a wellness check prompted by a concerned neighbor.
According to the EMTs who responded, the woman lived with her sister, who was a few years older. Both sisters reportedly had hoarding tendencies. Tragically, the older sister suffered a fatal heart attack and died in the same room near a space heater.
Due to her immobility, the patient remained seated in her wheelchair for eight days, unable to get up to use the restroom. She rationed a single bottle of water for as long as possible before eventually being discovered.
Her prolonged immobility and incontinence caused severe skin damage – to the extent that she had literally fused to the wheelchair, with feces and urine severely damaging her skin. Upon admission, medical staff documented extensive wounds during a skin check, including gangrene that had mummified her foot and breast.
The woman was placed under hospice care and succumbed to her wounds ten days after admission. Staff hope she passed peacefully.
Caregivers described the situation as emotionally devastating. “As awful as it sounds, sometimes we pray for the resident to pass because some wounds are almost torturous, especially when dealing with severe incontinence,” one worker said anonymously. They acknowledged there was nothing left that could save her.
Adding to the tragedy, the woman had been in denial about her sister’s death, insisting she was merely sleeping. It was only after a psychiatrist helped her accept the reality that she was able to move on. She died a day later.
