Province enlists Hamilton Health Sciences to manage site of city’s worst COVID-19 outbreak
Published December 17, 2020 at 10:19 am
Ontario’s Ministry of Long-Term Care approved on Wednesday (Dec. 16) to temporarily place the management of the site of Hamilton’s worst COVID-19 outbreak in the hands of Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS).
To date, Grace Villa Nursing Home on the East Mountain has seen 59 staff members and 118 residents test positive for COVID-19. Close to 20 people have died since the outbreak was declared on Nov. 25.
In a press release sent Wednesday, the province says the Voluntary Management Contract with HHS is intended to help address the current spread of COVID-19 at Grace Villa, help stabilize the situation and return the home to normal operations.
“Protecting our long-term care residents is our top priority,” said Dr. Merrilee Fullerton, Minister of Long-Term Care in the release.
“I thank the dedicated staff at Hamilton Health Sciences and Grace Villa Nursing Home for working together to stop the COVID-19 outbreak in this long-term care home.”
The ministry says in the release that it makes decisions based on case-by-case assessments, and in partnership with the local hospitals, as to which long-term care homes may require additional interim hospital support.
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Several other LTC outbreaks in Hamilton have contributed to the city’s mounting COVID-19-related death toll and they continue to worsen.
At Chartwell Willowgrove in Ancaster — where an outbreak was declared in late October — 36 staff members, two visitors and 63 residents have contracted the virus. In this case, Hamilton’s Public Health Services (PHS) issued a compliance order in November and the facility has been under the constant watch of public health professionals.
St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton was called in to investigate and monitor the outbreak at Hamilton Continuing Care that saw a total of 49 caes (28 residents, 21 staff) and eight deaths.
On Dec. 11, that outbreak was declared over.
An outbreak that was declared just last week (Dec. 9) at Shalom Village Nursing Home in Westdale has seen 34 staff members, one visitor and 43 residents test positive for coronavirus. St. Joe’s has also been called in to investigate and monitor the situation.
As of Wednesday, there are 16 seniors homes across Hamilton managing active COVID-19 outbreaks.
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