HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) – It has been 12 days since Charles Allen “Chuck” Carroll was last seen on December 30th at Cabell Huntington Hospital.
Huntington Police said Carroll is 70 years old and has dementia.
On Tuesday, the WSAZ requested the police to report missing persons via Carroll.
From that report, WSAZ learned that Carroll was a resident of an assisted living facility in Huntington.
We spoke to the owner of the house he lives in and she said Carroll was rushed to Cabell Huntington Hospital in an ambulance on December 30th.
According to the report, he was taken there after showing flu-like symptoms.
It wasn’t until six days later, on January 5, that Carroll’s social worker contacted the Huntington Police to report him missing, according to a police report.
At the time, she told the police that she called the hospital and the staff told her that they did not have a patient with his name.
The report went on to say a hospital attendant later told the social worker that Carroll left between 4 p.m. December 30 and 2 p.m. January 4.
WSAZ reached out to Cabell Huntington Hospital and asked for their logs when someone with memory problems like dementia is moved from a care facility to the emergency room. We asked how these patients are being monitored to make sure they do not migrate.
A spokesman for the hospital replied:
“When a nursing home or care facility transports a patient to the hospital, the facility generally produces a report on the patient’s condition so that the hospital has the information it needs to treat the patient and keep the patient safe . “
The WSAZ asked for further explanations about the protocols for patients with dementia. They replied:
“Because information related to patient care is considered proprietary health information under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA), I cannot address a specific situation regarding a patient.”
We also reached out to DHHR to ask logs for social workers to check how often they should check the condition of their clients after they have been taken to hospital for treatment.
A spokesman said the WSAZ was being investigated.
A Huntington city spokesman said police received photos of Carroll and kept an eye out for him and scanned areas near the hospital using surveillance footage to find out where he might have gone.
WSAZ asked the hospital for the surveillance material.
The missing person report says that Carroll makes frequent visits to the area near St. Mary’s Medical Center because his parents lived in the area. He can also tell officers that he is waiting for his cousin or other family member to pick him up.
Anyone with information on Carroll’s whereabouts is asked to call 304-526-8585.
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