Seven deaths at Grace Villa, but how many due to COVID is unclear

Seven Grace Villa residents have died in the last week - though it's unclear how many had COVID.

In an interview late Wednesday, Mary Raithby, CEO of APANS Health Services, which owns Grace Villa, said seven residents have died since Nov. 28. While just four of them tested positive for COVID, Raithby noted it's been a week since facility-wide COVID tests were conducted.

If those residents were alive and retested ... were they incubating? I don't know that," Raithby said. Swabbing is only as good as the last swab."

None who tested negative and later died had symptoms, she said. If residents have symptoms, they are retested.

The next round of testing is scheduled for Friday.

The seven deaths include an 84-year-old woman and an 89-year-old woman, who were both positive and died Saturday and Sunday, respectively. Two people who were negative - a 97-year-old woman and a 77-year-old man - died Tuesday. Three women - a 93-year-old who was negative and a 79-year-old and 80-year-old who were positive - died Wednesday.

The new COVID deaths bring Hamilton's death toll to 95.

Public health includes all COVID-19 cases who died" in its total, regardless of whether or not the virus was determined to be a contributing factor or underlying cause of death. This suggests those who died without a COVID positive test would not be included in the tally.

Raithby said 156 people were residing in the 184-bed long-term care home as of Nov. 25, the day the outbreak was declared. With the seven deaths, there are now 149 residents.

Grace Villa was hit with a public health order on Saturday, Nov. 28, in an attempt to control spread. The home was ordered to allow staff from Hamilton Health Sciences to monitor, investigate and respond to the long-term care home's outbreak.

Raithby acknowledged staffing has been a challenge. Staff also have more work due to extra precautions that need to be taken during an outbreak, she said.

Of the home's roughly 190 staff, 40 are currently off work - self-isolating either because they have tested positive or because they have symptoms, she said.

A total of 38 residents and 26 staff had tested positive as of Wednesday, though eight staff cases are considered resolved, Raithby said.

Katrina Clarke is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach her via email: katrinaclarke@thespec.com