Quebec's health minister has launched an investigation after a woman used her cellphone video to capture two seniors' home residents lying on the floor next to their beds for more than two minutes without anyone helping them.

Johanne Panneton was heading to visit her 85-year-old mother at Centre d'hébergement Cooke in Trois-Rivières, about 140 kilometres northeast of Montreal, last Wednesday when she saw two residents on the ground.

Panneton said it wasn't the first time she had witnessed something troubling at the home — so she pulled out her cellphone.

"I decided to film because they've said in the past: 'Give us proof and we will try to do something when an incident like this happens,'" she said.

Martin Beaumont, president of the health board for the region, said this weekend that while he's sensitive to the situation, two minutes is within acceptable norms.

"For me, a two-minute response time, with a clientele in a home environment, seems acceptable."

Beaumont said the residence was fully staffed at the time.

But Rosaire Hamelin, head of a union local representing seniors' residence care workers, said the situation is unacceptable.

"Someone has to respond and find solutions, because it doesn't make any sense," he said.

Quebec Health Minister Gaétan Barrette said in a statement the situation depicted in the video was "neither acceptable nor normal."

Barrette has designated two investigators to look into the level of care at the facility.

Their report will be submitted to the minister by Aug. 17.