THUNDER BAY – Southbridge Care Homes has defended its handling of a deadly COVID-19 outbreak at its Roseview long-term care home in Thunder Bay, following the release of a highly critical report from provincial inspectors.
Southbridge executive Candace Chartier said Friday the company had put in “tremendous” efforts to respond to the outbreak, which has claimed 20 lives and infected at least 136 staff and residents since it was declared on Nov. 17.
A report from Ontario’s Ministry of Long Term Care, based on December inspections and released this week, found multiple violations at Roseview had likely accelerated the spread of the virus inside the home.
Those included residents being allowed to wander the facility, failures to properly wear PPE or sanitize hands by staff, a failure to maintain proper distancing at times, and more.
Chartier, who serves as chief seniors' advocate and strategic partnerships officer for the company, said Southbridge was working diligently to address the shortcomings identified in the report.
“The inspector came in, she identified some areas she felt needed improvement, and we’re addressing those areas,” said Chartier.
“Obviously, we always strive to be above and beyond the hundreds of minimum standards that we meet every day. But if an inspector comes in with a fresh set of eyes and sees something she identifies, we immediately look at it, we address those issues.”
The company is required to provide the ministry with a plan to correct the situation and achieve compliance.
Chartier sounded a note of hope that the outbreak could be nearing its conclusion, with active cases down to 10 on Friday.
“We’re hopeful, based on everything we have put in place, that we’re approaching the end of the outbreak,” she said. “The active cases among staff and residents are going down.”
Chartier attributed failings partly to staffing shortages in the early days of the pandemic, although the inspectors’ report covered four days in the home in December.
“At the beginning of the outbreak, staffing was a challenge due to staff becoming ill,” she said. “But our team hit the ground running, we worked diligently to increase staffing levels.”
“Within the first few days, we got 55 new personal support workers to the area – we flew them there, we got them from the local community – as well as more than 20 registered staff.”
The regional hospital and other public health agencies have also assisted with staffing at the beleaguered home, which the union representing many Roseview staff recently likened to a war zone.
Chartier credited those health agencies, and the community at large, for rallying around the home during the outbreak.
Roseview has more recently added a dedicated infection control and prevention (IPAC) specialist and epidemiologist, she noted, as well as other measures such as a dedicated “IPAC champion” on every unit and every shift.
“We’re aligning our daily routine with every IPAC practice that we can,” Chartier said, adding that all Southbridge homes had always had adequate PPE.
Those measures have not stopped some major breaches from occurring, however. The home was recently revealed to have allowed an infected PSW to work two shifts in late December, even after the company had been informed she had tested positive for COVID-19.
Southbridge apologized for the incident and took responsibility, though it also suggested a security guard had not followed protocols.
“We’re all hurting, we’re all devastated by this outbreak, and we’re just seeing the light at the end of the tunnel because the numbers are coming down,” said Chartier. “We’re all praying we can move forward and not have any further loss of life.”
