Just when a number of long term care homes in the region had been declared COVID free, a Hamilton retirement residence has been hit hard buy the virus. Eight residents of the Rosslyn Retirement Residence have been transferred to hospital. So far 49 people have tested positive. One resident has died.Thirteen staff members are among the 49 tested positive and as a result six staff members and one physician from St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton and Hamilton Health Sciences have been deployed to the home “to assess patients’ health conditions and facilitate the safe transfer of patients to hospital, as required,” according to a City news release.
Paul Johnson, head of the city’s emergency operations centre, said during a media briefing Friday that the home was also dealing with a staff shortage and officials have had to send in assistance to care for residents. “We get involved when staffing levels are critical,” he said. Staff from local hospitals have stepped in there, he said, but “the staffing situation has worsened.”
Public Health Services warned the Rosslyn of potential staffing issues in April. It along with 42 other care facilities were ordered to improve infection controls.
Public health also ordered the home to develop a contingency plan in case there was a staff shortage. The order was issued following an inspection on April 15, which identified the Rosslyn as a facility that was “inadequately prepared to respond to a case or outbreak of COVID-19.” The main issue in the order was the facility’s lack of a detailed response plan.
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