The body of a woman who went missing from her room in San Francisco General Hospital more than two weeks ago was found dead in a stairwell at the hospital Tuesday, according to a San Francisco Gate report.
Lynne Spalding went missing from her hospital room Sept. 21. Family and friends launched extensive search efforts, and the San Francisco police were investigating her disappearance.
On Tuesday, an employee at the city-owned hospital was conducting a quarterly check when the employee found Ms. Spalding's body in an exterior stairwell on the facility's fourth floor.
Officials said the stairwell, which is enclosed by wire mesh, was used as a fire exit and not routinely used by staff or patients. The door leading to the stairwell is alarmed and locked from the outside, and officials are investigating whether the alarm was triggered or working, according to the report.
Ms. Spalding was hospitalized Sept. 19 for complications related to an infection.
"What happened at our hospital is horrible," hospital CMO Todd May, MD, said in the report. "This has shaken us to our core. We are devastated. We don't know what happened to this woman."
At a press conference yesterday, hospital officials were unable to answer some questions due to an ongoing investigation, according to the report.
David Perry, a spokesperson for the Spalding family, called the event a nightmare and said they are waiting for more answers. "Lynne Spalding died alone, in a stairwell, in one of the finest medical institutions in this country," he said in the report.
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