Resident of Millrise seniors home dies from COVID-19 as province provides extra staff

A resident of the Millrise Seniors Village in southwest Calgary has died from COVID-19 as the province moves to shore up staffing at the facility where an outbreak has spread to 21 residents and 11 staff, officials confirmed on Tuesday.

Retirement Concepts, the company that owns the residence, says In a letter posed on its website that the resident who died had previously tested positive for COVID-19.

The other 21 residents who have tested positive are all on the building's third floor, eight in long-term care and 13 in supported living.

Eleven staff members have tested positive, and all are at home in isolation. The company said it is also experiencing staffing shortages.

In a statement to CBC News, Alberta Health Services (AHS) said it has brought in its own onsite care manager to coordinate control of the outbreak and prevent further infections.

AHS is also working with the company to augment staffing levels at the facility, supplying extra RNs, LPN's and health-care aids.

"Alberta Health Services has stepped in to supplement staff and we are appreciative for their assistance during this difficult period," the company said.

"This has also allowed us to add additional resources and ensure families of COVID-positive families are contacted each day." 

Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta's chief medical officer of health, said Tuesday that the province has identified issues at Millrise and said direction has been given to put measures in place to both prevent the spread of COVID-19 and ensure resident care is adequate.

She said if they are not able to increase the level of care within a certain timeframe, AHS will look at options to step in further.

The death at the home has not yet been counted in Alberta Health's numbers.

Resident refuses to let staff in room, granddaughter says

Rachel Barsky says her grandmother who lives at Millrise Seniors Village is staying by herself in her room to avoid getting sick. She tested negative over the weekend.

"It is more comforting to have Alberta Health Services in there, but my grandmother is actually not permitting any staff from entering her room," she said.

"It's just a very unfortunate situation. i think this is something they were not prepared for, as with so many long-term care facilities in Canada. We're seeing a real systemic issue being uncovered across Canada with for-profit care homes."

The village first announced on April 16 that there was an outbreak, with two residents testing positive.

Long-term care facilities have been hard-hit by the coronavirus, both in Alberta and elsewhere. COVID-19 is particularly dangerous for the elderly and those with chronic health problems. 

In one of the worst outbreaks at a care home in Alberta, a severe outbreak at the Mckenzie Towne care home in southeast Calgary has claimed the lives of 21 residents since the COVID-19 pandemic began, while dozens of residents and workers there tested positive for the illness.

There have been confirmed cases at a number of other care facilities in Calgary as well as elsewhere in the province.

There were 4,850 cases of COVID-19 recorded in Alberta as of Tuesday afternoon's update from the province — 3,366 of them in the Calgary zone.