Revera grilled about Maples home outbreak during town hall

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This article was published 09/11/2020 (1465 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The families of Maples care home residents who took part in a virtual town hall meeting Tuesday evening, accused Revera of understaffing the home and failing to communicate with them during an outbreak that has killed 22 residents.

Adria Penner, whose 77-year-old mother has been a resident of the home for more than five years, said she has long been concerned about poor documentation, staffing shortages and inconsistent information provided to families.

After the virtual meeting, she said her mind hadn’t changed.

“I’m still pretty upset, I think,” Penner said. “I think it just affirmed my frustration and it’s not really anything new.”

During the 90-minute meeting, staff at Maples and executive members of Revera, the Ontario-based company which owns the care home, provided updates on the COVID-19 outbreak at the home and outlined plans to ensure quality of care for residents before taking questions from family members.

Several attendees complained they had been unable to get a hold of staff or management at Maples to receive updated information on their family members. Some said they had called dozens of times only to get full voice mail boxes, while others had written emails and received no response.

Penner’s mother was diagnosed with COVID-19 in October after contracting the virus in Maples care home. Though she is now asymptomatic, Penner said she can’t get updates about her mother.

“I tried to call, and I’ve been very persistent…with trying to get answers and it’s been about half and half that I get a response,” she said. “It’s not until I feel like I’m being really aggressive before I get a response.”

Jason Chester, vice-president of operations at the home, acknowledged families’ concerns, noting the staff would heed feedback and become “more forward thinking” in communication efforts.

He assured families Revera has been in contact with the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority and would have staff support from the Red Cross on Friday.

Residents questioned why Revera waited so long to call in external resources as the outbreak spread throughout the home.

“Is it a matter of not wanting to have a lawsuit? I don’t know what it is but why didn’t they call for help?” Penner asked.

Chester acknowledged the staffing complement at Maples would need to be doubled.

Revera reported 45 staff members have tested positive for the virus and are self-isolating, while 11 staff cases have been resolved.

Staff has been supplemented through overtime hours, temporary agency staff and new hires, though the company said it has struggled to attain new hires willing to work in a care home with a severe outbreak.

Revera said Tuesday that seven residents had been taken to hospital, with five hospitalizations related to COVID-19. Of the 152 residents remaining in the home, 10 have been diagnosed with the virus and a further 84 COVID cases have been marked as resolved.

Revera confirmed 22 residents had died as a result of the outbreak.

Many families on the line expressed frustrations with the home’s handling of the outbreak as the call ended, calling the town hall a “disgrace” and noting they felt their questions had been unanswered.

On Tuesday, Manitoba’s chief public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin told the Free Press miscommunications from Revera—including an incident over the weekend where Revera representatives misreported the staffing complement on a night several emergency responders were called to the home—were “obviously unacceptable.”

“We owe it to those Manitobans and their families to do what we can to protect them,” Roussin said. “And hearing news like that, is certainly disturbing.”

—with files from Danielle DaSilva

julia-simone.rutgers@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jsrutgers