Red Deer Regional Hospital (rdnewsNOW file photo)

By Alessia Proietti

extensive injuries

Red Deer Regional Hospital employee allegedly attacked by patient in psychiatric unit

Mar 19, 2024 | 2:55 PM

CAUTION: Some details and photos in this story may be disturbing to some readers.

A staff member at the Red Deer Regional Hospital was allegedly attacked by a patient in the psychiatric unit earlier this month.

Alberta RCMP say they received a report from hospital security around noon on March 2, that a patient assaulted a staff member during the evening of March 1.

They say the victim is a 43-year-old male resident of Red Deer.

A GoFundMe page has been set up by Cyrille Mae Aquino, who claims her husband, Jason Aquino, was trying to protect a co-worker from an aggressive and violent patient.

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She describes that Jason was assaulted and fell as a result, hitting the back of his head on the ground which caused him to lose consciousness, followed by a cardiac arrest.

She says he was transferred from the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) to the Cardiology Care Unit until he had an Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator surgery on March 14, a device meant to regulate irregular heart rhythms, according to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada.

An update on Sunday on the GoFundMe page says that he is now home and recovering.

“It will be a long road to recovery as he [has] so many restrictions but for now we are just happy that he’s back to us,” said Cyrille and her family on the website.

As of Tuesday, the page has gotten 153 donations totalling $8,845 out of the $10,000 goal.

Cyrille says her husband is known for his “bright and caring personality”.

“He is a kind-hearted and compassionate [person] who always puts others before himself. He is known for his positive attitude and willingness to help others,” she wrote, adding he will be out of work for a while. “Our family is devastated by this unexpected tragic event.”

Photo posted by Cyrille Mae Aquino on the GoFundMe page showing Jason and their family. (GoFundMe)

Alberta RCMP Corporal Troy Savinkoff said no charges have been laid at this time as the incident is currently under investigation with the General Investigative Section, a team of senior officers who specialize in complex files.

“In every offence, there has to be two portions that are met: the actus reus, which is Latin for ‘the act’, and then the mens rea, which is the mental capacity to have made that decision to perform the act,” he said. “We’re dealing with a mental issue so these are things that they’re determining through their investigation; to see if there’s a mens rea portion here.”

Charges, if any, will be determined following the investigation.

Due to the matter being under investigation, Alberta Health Services provided the following statement:

“The care and well-being of our patients, staff and physicians is always our first concern. We take any situation that impacts the safety of our staff or the patients we’re caring for very seriously.

AHS has programs in place to address staff safety.

If an accident or injury does occur, we have processes to ensure our staff get the support and treatment they need.

AHS always conducts internal reviews to determine improvements that can be made following any serious incident. If changes are recommended following such reviews, those changes will be made.”

Photo posted by Cyrille Mae Aquino on the GoFundMe page of her husband Jason. (GoFundMe)

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