‘The PSWs and nurses that I’ve spoken to said there’s going to be PTSD afterwards…. It was such a mess because there was no staff there’
Behind the health-care staff, and inside the doors of Pinecrest, one of the worst COVID-19 tragedies in the country was still unfolding. As of Thursday, the virus had taken the lives of 29 residents in the 65-bed facility, and one volunteer. Pinecrest is not releasing the names of the victims, but according to family, who had spoken to the media, the volunteer’s name was Jean Pollock. Her husband, Ted, 92, a resident, died seven days after her…
What went wrong
Pinecrest, a privately owned, ageing single-storey building, with up to four residents in a room, separated only by curtains, was uniquely positioned to be devastated by the pandemic. Like most long term care facilities in Ontario, it was chronically understaffed before the crisis began. When the crisis finally hit there was a lack of testing capability, limited communication, and questions as to why the public wasn’t made aware of the scope of the outbreak sooner. And why a doctor in a neighbouring town was the first to sound the alarm.
When Dr. Jones posted his warning on March 21, it was 10 days after the World Health Organization had declared COVID-19 a global pandemic. Five days after that announcement, the first two deaths at Pinecrest were confirmed. An additional 33 residents were already showing symptoms. Then things began to spiral out of control. The deaths began occurring in bunches. Seven one day. Four another. For six straight days in early April, not a day passed without a death. Almost half of the facility’s residents have now died — all before the number of COVID-19 cases in the province has peaked.
There are no simple answers for what went wrong at Pinecrest, but a confluence of factors offer some perspective.
Read the full piece in Canada’s The National Post here: https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/covid-19-coronavirus-pinecrest-nursing-home-bobcaygeon