California - Nurse at a senior living facility won't aid a resident despite pleas from a 911 dispatcher, citing policy.
Bakersfield fire dispatcher Tracey Halvorson pleaded with the woman on the other end of the line to start CPR on an elderly woman who was barely breathing.
"It's a human being," Halvorson said, speaking quickly. "Is there anybody that's willing to help this lady and not let her die?"
The woman paused.
"Um, not at this time."
According to a 911 tape released by the Bakersfield Fire Department, the woman told Halvorson that she was a nurse at Glenwood Gardens, a senior living facility in Bakersfield. But the nurse refused to give the woman CPR as directed by the dispatcher, saying it was against the facility's policy for staff to do so, according to the tape.
The elderly woman was identified by KGET-TV Channel 17 as 87-year-old Lorraine Bayless. She died Tuesday at Mercy Southwest Hospital, the station reported.
Jeffrey Toomer, executive director of Glenwood Gardens, issued a statement on behalf of the facility, extending his sympathies to the Bayless family. But Toomer also defended the nurse, saying she followed policy.