Many care homes ‘doing great job,’ researcher says
Despite high death count, just two per cent of residents have virus, study finds
Forty three per cent of COVID -19 deaths in Canada are among residents of long-term care homes, according to new research from Bruyère Research Institute researcher Amy Hsu.
Despite that, just two per cent of all of the country’s care home residents have been diagnosed with COVID-19, Hsu found.
Hsu said the findings reflect the fact that residents of long-term care homes are especially vulnerable to COVID -19.
They also suggest infection is not as widespread among longterm care home residents as some might think.
“Many long-term care homes are doing a great job of keeping their residents safe.”
Hsu said her research also indicates that the kind of changes made by provinces to limit the spread of infection in long-term care homes can make a difference.
After an increase in deaths among long-term care residents in Ontario, Premier Doug Ford announced this week that longterm care staff would no longer be able to work at more than one location, as workers traditionally have done.
Ford announced a number of other steps aimed at reducing the toll of COVID-19 on longterm care residents, saying he was heartbroken to hear of deaths at homes around the province.
Hsu said she sees evidence, from British Columbia, that the limitation of workers to one home makes a difference in preventing the spread of infection.
B.C., which had the country’s first COVID -19-related deadly outbreak in a long-term care home, last month banned employees from working in more than one home.
It also boosted pay for longterm care workers. Statistics collected by Hsu show a general drop in the proportion of deaths in the province among long-term care residents since then.
All levels of government have scrambled in recent weeks to reduce COVID-19 deaths among long-term care residents.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Wednesday he will work with the provinces to top up pay for essential and long-term care workers who earn less than $2,500 a month.
According to the Council of Nursing Home Unions, the average nursing home worker in Canada takes home around $1,022 every two weeks.
Hsu also found that fatality rates among Canadians in longterm care homes range between 15 and 19 per cent, comparable with rates around the world among people over 80.
Given the vulnerability of that population, infection prevention is the most effective strategy to reduce deaths in long-term care homes, she said.
In recent years, residents of homes in Ontario have become older and sicker, with the majority suffering from dementia, as well as other health issues, according to earlier research.
That factors into the outcomes
Because residents in long-term care homes are more susceptible to serious infection once exposed to COVID-19, homes where infection has been introduced have suffered dire consequences.
of COVID-19 outbreaks in longterm care homes, Hsu says.
“Because residents in long-term care homes are more susceptible to serious infection once exposed to COVID -19, homes where infection has been introduced have suffered dire consequences.”
Without strong interventions, her research suggests there could be many more long-term care deaths.
But steps being taken can make a difference.
“I think all the governments are moving in the right direction,” she said.
“In retrospect we all feel that things could have been done sooner,” she added, while indicating there is evidence lessons are being learned that will lead to improved care.