Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital near Lake Barrington.
For the second time in two days, a patient at Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital near Barrington managed to leave the emergency department and go missing, according to officials.
A 35-year-old Fox River Grove man left the hospital before being discharged Tuesday afternoon but was found by authorities a day later and safely returned to the hospital, officials said.
On Monday evening, Michelle Riechers, 61, of Lake in the Hills, drowned in the large pond on the hospital campus shortly after she left the emergency department before being discharged. Officials were concerned about both patients’ mental well-being when they went missing.
In a statement Thursday, Kristen Johnson, a spokeswoman for Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital, thanked local first responders for their role in finding the Fox River Grove man and for helping hospital staff and loved ones locate Reichers’ body.
When asked for details about how both patients were able to leave the emergency room without being stopped, Johnson declined to answer, saying she would not provide details on what happened out of respect for the patients’ and their families’ privacy.
Lake County sheriff’s Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said deputies were called to help Tuesday afternoon and learned that there were significant concerns about the Fox River Grove man’s mental well-being. Covelli said deputies believe the man was wearing only boxer shorts when he left the hospital and walked for 2 miles. Covelli said deputies believe the man met an acquaintance who helped him get clothes hours after he fled the hospital.
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