Dearborn police concerned over hospital patients being discharged with no clothes, shoes

Dearborn police concerned after hospital patients released without essentials

Police body-worn cameras captured a patient just discharged from Corewell Health Hospital in Dearborn. He didn?t have shoes on and was hooked up to a colostomy bag, wandering a neighborhood near the hospital when Dearborn police responded.

DEARBORN, Mich. (FOX 2) - Hospital patients are being discharged without clothes, money, phones, and some not even wearing shoes. 

What they're saying:

Dearborn police are very concerned because they say this is happening frequently at Corwell Health Hospital in Dearborn.

Police body-worn cameras captured a patient just discharged from Corewell Health Hospital in Dearborn. He didn’t have shoes on and was hooked up to a colostomy bag, wandering a neighborhood near the hospital when Dearborn police responded.

Dig deeper:

FOX 2 learned it was not an isolated incident, according to police. In 2025 alone, there have been 200 calls for police service to Corewell Health in Dearborn.

Dearborn Police Corporal Dan Bartok says they’ve been in talks with higher-ups at Corewell Health to figure out a solution because their officers are turning it into a taxi service.

Bartok says, in talks with Corewell Health, they’ve said it’s their policy to assist patients with transportation two hours or later after they’ve been discharged, not before. Anxious patients end up leaving before.

The other side:

The hospital released a statement saying: 

"Safety is our top priority. During the discharge process, we ask patients if they have transportation. If they do not, we offer assistance. Sometimes patients do not accept our assistance. Due to patient confidentiality, we cannot discuss specific patient situations."

"We continue to work with Corewell Hospital. We're encouraged they’re going to come to the table to resolve these issues, but we have to do our part to keep the community safe too," Bartok said.