Nine dead of COVID-19 at one seniors residence
Nine elderly Montrealers have died from COVID -19 at the Centre d’hébergement Alfred-desrochers in Côte-des-neiges in the last few days in the worst outbreak to date of the pandemic in the city.
A total of 39 people have tested positive at the government-run seniors’ residence on Victoria Ave. An additional 13 patients are also infected at the nearby Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal on Queen Mary Rd.
Public health officials suspect the two outbreaks are linked. The Institut oversees the 125-room Alfred-desrochers and its workers shuttle back and forth between the two facilities that share the same back yard.
“Every death is one too many, and we really wish to extend our deepest sympathies, our condolences to the families and friends of these nine victims,” said Jean-nicolas Aubé, a spokesperson for Montreal’s Centre-south health authority.
“We don’t have specific information regarding the origins of these outbreaks, as the information is evolving very quickly.”
Five employees at the Institut have tested positive for the coronavirus, along with three employees at Alfred-desrochers. They are now at home in self-isolation.
“These employees did not necessarily contract COVID -19 at work,” Aubé said. “As we now know, community transmission is well-established in Quebec.”
Meanwhile, a small outbreak has occurred on one floor of the Jewish Eldercare Centre, also on Victoria Ave. The floor is reserved for patients with Alzheimer’s disease.
The three outbreaks are among 36 that are currently afflicting care centres and seniors’ residences in Montreal as the coronavirus continues to spread in every neighbourhood. On Sunday, the number of outbreaks in those facilities stood at 28.
Dr. Lawrence Rosenberg, executive director of the Centre-west health authority, said staff have quarantined the floor of the outbreak at Jewish Eldercare.
“That’s a floor where residents have Alzheimer’s and they tend to wander because we can’t keep them locked in their rooms,” Rosenberg explained. “On that floor there have been a number of residents who tested positive. So far, none of them, thank God, is very sick.”
Health officials suspect the surge in the city’s outbreaks is a sign the pandemic is beginning to peak in Montreal and are warning of a difficult two weeks ahead. Medical staff are also growing exhausted from taking care of so many infected patients all at once.
Charna Bonan’s mother, Alyne Singerman, is one of the patients at Jewish Eldercare who is infected with COVID -19.
“I got a phone call on Thursday that my mother had a fever on Wednesday, she was coughing and they were testing her,” Bonan said. “On Friday night, the head nurse called me to tell me she tested positive.
“The bottom line,” Bonan added, “is I was told that I shouldn’t call anymore because they’re overworked, overburdened.”
The public health department released its latest neighbourhood breakdown on Monday. It shows that Lasalle has overtaken Côtest-luc for the second-highest number of COVID-19 infections on Montreal Island after the borough of Côte-des-neiges—notredame-de-grâce. Côte-st-luc, however, is still reporting the greatest concentration of cases.
There are now 15 boroughs and municipalities on the island with more than 100 cases each, up from 14 on Sunday. Montreal North is the 15th, with 117 cases. The adjoining borough of Ahuntsic— Cartierville observed the biggest single-day spike in cases, underscoring the highly contagious nature of the coronavirus.
In contrast, the number of cases stayed the same for a second day in several municipalities, including Outremont (113), Town of Mount-royal (36), Hampstead (27), Kirkland (12) and Beaconsfield (10), suggesting that social-distancing measures may be working.
Also on Monday, Montreal reported a total of 3,977 COVID-19 cases, up by 264 since Sunday. Although the increase was lower than the last two days, authorities cautioned against jumping to conclusions, as the city’s labs sometimes face a backlog in the processing of tests.
Montreal is still considered to be the hot spot of the pandemic in Canada. The metropolis is now doubling its number of cases every six days. On March 31, the city declared 1,991 infections.
The health department reported a cumulative total of 29 deaths on Friday. Since then, the department has not made public the latest mortality figures, aside from the nine deaths at Alfred-desrochers.
Among the boroughs and municipalities with the highest number of cases:
Côte-des-neiges—notre-damede-grâce: 384, up 14 cases since Sunday.
Lasalle: 219, up by 15 cases.
Côte-st-luc: 207, up by 15 cases.
Rosemont—la Petite Patrie: 194, up 13 cases.
Ahuntsic—cartierville: 176, up by
33 cases.
COVID -19 is infecting every age group, but the greatest number is being diagnosed in those between the ages of 40 and 49, although the demographic that is the most vulnerable to severe complications and death are in the 80-plus range.