'heartbroken and angry': ottawa man found dead after homecare agency closes his file
5 minute read
norine gagnon's brother, john lacombe (pictured), died alone in his apartment in january. ontario health athome had closed his file because he was not answering his phone.
julie oliver
/
postmedia
an ottawa man died alone in his apartment in january after the province’s homecare agency closed his file without seeing him because he wasn’t answering the phone.
john lacombe, 62, was discovered on jan. 21, when his sister became concerned and called police for a wellness check. norine gagnon was told that her brother had probably been dead for seven or eight days by then. earlier the same day, someone from ontario health athome had called gagnon to say they were closing his file because they had been unable to contact him to set up care.
gagnon, a retired nurse, is looking for answers about why staff with ontario health athome did not take further steps to contact her brother or check on him instead of closing his file. she had told them her brother, who lived alone, had difficulty answering the phone after having a stroke.
“i am heartbroken, but also angry. despite his fragile health, no one checked in and he died alone. they understood his risks yet they did nothing, no follow-ups, no check-ins — just promises that went unfulfilled,” she said. “our health system must do much better. lives depend on it.”
after gagnon contacted a reporter about the story, a representative from ontario health athome called her to offer condolences and say they were reviewing the case and “taking a deep dive to find out what went wrong.”
gagnon says she believes the agency only took action — two months after her brother’s death — after she started speaking out about the case. no one had contacted her earlier about a review or to say they were looking into the circumstances surrounding her brother’s death.
“i told her john was supposed to get home care in 2025 and somebody shows up in 2026 and a couple of weeks later he is gone and they have done nothing.”
gagnon says she spoke with representatives of ontario health athome — the provincial agency responsible for planning, co-ordinating and funding home and community care services — several times in the weeks before her brother’s death about getting home care. the first time was at the beginning of january, before lacombe was discharged from queensway carleton hospital.
norine gagnon’s brother, john lacombe (pictured), died in his apartment in january. ‘i am heartbroken, but also angry,’ she said. ‘despite his fragile health, no one checked in and he died alone.’
julie oliver
/
postmedia
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on jan. 15, gagnon called ontario health athome to see whether they had followed through and provided care to her brother following the initial meeting. she asked a representative whether they were “doing anything” and was told that he wasn’t answering his phone.
“i said, ‘go and knock on the door, do a wellness check. this man needs help.’”
gagnon says she doesn’t believe that ever happened because her brother was likely already dead at that point, according to what the coroner said when he was found on jan. 21.
she wants to know why the homecare agency didn’t appear to make a serious effort to contact her brother or to find out about what condition he was in. she also wants to know why home care did not come earlier to support her brother who had been in and out of hospital, whose health had deteriorated significantly and who needed help.
a spokesperson for ontario health athome said in a statement that the organization had processes in place for when a patient couldn’t be located or contacted.
“this includes continuing to attempt to make contact with the patient, connecting with police for a wellness check when there becomes a concern for the patient’s well-being and documenting all efforts made within our internal event management system and patient record,” said dave richie, director of communications with ontario health athome.
richie did not directly answer a question about whether ontario health athome did everything it should have in lacombe’s case, citing patient confidentiality.
he said the organization had a protocol “following any situation where a patient has passed away unexpectedly in their home.” that includes an internal investigation.
a spokesperson for queensway carleton hospital, from which lacombe was discharged during the first week of january, said the hospital took discharge decisions very seriously and “would never discharge a patient home that we think would be unsafe.”
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spokesperson ann fuller said the hospital worked closely with ontario health athome when a patient needed home care or community supports after discharge.
“ontario health athome conducts its own assessments, determines eligibility for services and becomes the lead organization for ongoing community-based care once a patient leaves hospitals,” fuller said.
according to gagnon, lacombe’s health worsened significantly beginning in january 2025, when he had a stroke. she took him to the emergency department at queensway carleton, where he was treated and remained for several weeks. he went to rehab there, but eventually discharged himself, she said.
later in the year he ended up at the ottawa heart institute because of a cardiac issue and shortness of breath. “he was having difficulty. his heart was giving out,” gagnon said.
she said she asked about getting him help at home before he was discharged, but there was no follow-up that she was aware of. she said he continued to have difficulty breathing. “some days he would phone and he would have to hang up because he couldn’t get his breath.” he was also having difficulty taking his medication, she said, because of memory issues and mobility problems.
she said she repeatedly asked for additional help for him, even suggesting that he should go into a facility such as a long-term-care home where he could take his medications and get the support he needed. gagnon, who was not his power of attorney, said there was a limit to what she could do.
gagnon again took her brother to the emergency department at queensway carleton on new year’s day of this year. he remained on a bed in the emergency department for several days.
before he was discharged, a co-ordinator from ontario health athome came to see him while gagnon was visiting.
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“i just looked at her and said: ‘finally.’”
she expected that he would begin receiving support soon after that meeting until she heard that they were unable to reach him because he was not answering the phone.
“i said, ‘he can’t always make the phone. try knocking on the door.’”
gagnon said the system let her brother down and she worried there were others like him who were also falling through gaps.
“people definitely need an advocate. he needed one. i did my best, but it wasn’t enough.
“it is too late for my brother, but i don’t think this is the first individual this has happened to. when you go to work, you are accountable and responsible for your job and doing the right thing. that didn’t happen.”
ontario health athome came under fire last fall after critical supply chain failure left some dying patients without symptom relief and others waiting for access to needed medications. a report by ontario’s patient ombudsman concluded that a lack of planning and oversight at the government agency contributed to the crisis that was triggered by one vendor.
last year, the ontario government announced a $1.3-billion investment over three years to expand home care in the province, including the hospital to home program.
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