Another Vaughan seniors home hit hard by COVID-19

Villa Da Vinci Retirement Residence joins Pine Grove Long-term Care, both located in Woodbridge, as fastest-growing outbreaks in York Region

Yorkregion.com
November 3, 2020
Kim Zarzour

Two Vaughan long-term care-homes --just a few kilometres part --top the list of York Region hot spots during COVID-19’s second wave, and some are questioning whether the delay in moving to Stage 2 restrictions could be to blame.

Villa Da Vinci Retirement Residence has joined Pine Grove Long-term Care, both located in Woodbridge, as fastest-growing outbreaks in the region.

Just over a week after the outbreak was first declared at Villa Da Vinci on Oct. 25, 49, almost half, of the 108 residents tested positive for COVID-19, and one resident has died.

Nineteen of the 62 caregivers on staff have also tested positive.

Three miles to the east, Pine Grove is experiencing a similar explosion in cases.

The region first reported the outbreak at Pine Grove on Oct. 18. Within days, positive cases skyrocketed to 37 of 109 residents and 13 of 109 staff.

Sienna operates Villa Da Vinci and Chartwell operates Pine Grove, two of the biggest for-profit long-term-care companies in the province.

Sienna spokesperson Natalie Gokchenian said the company is working closely with public health and has bolstered safety protocols, with residents remaining in their rooms, programming suspended, cohorting employees and only essential caregivers in the residence.

This is in addition to “significant action” taken in the past few months to prepare for the second wave, she said, such as growing PPE supplies, reinforcing infection prevention and control and supporting the front lines.

Chartwell, too, said it has heightened infection prevention and control and is working with public health experts.

Of the 18 active outbreaks in York Region, these two homes are noticeably higher in case counts than any other in the region, and both are located in Woodbridge, the hardest hit community in York Region.

Asked why this is so, and what Vaughan is doing to mitigate the situation, Mayor Maurizio Bevilacqua said, in an emailed statement, the city’s top priority remains health and safety.

“From the onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic, I have said we are in a marathon, not a sprint,” he said. “We are in the second wave of this virus, and we must continue doing everything in our power to reduce the impact to our city. That includes following the advice of our public health experts and limiting opportunities for further transmission.”

Vaughan continues to work closely with York Region Public Health, he said.

“My thoughts and prayers are with the front-line workers, residents and families,” he said.

Moving Vaughan, and all of York Region, to a Modified Stage 2 on Oct. 19 signalled that “while we have come a long way, there is still a long way to go,” he said.

But some, like Sue Gowans, a retired PhD researcher who is tracking COVID data, wonder if Ontario should have moved some areas to Stage 2 restrictions sooner.

Long-term-care and retirement homes are at particular risk when community transmission is rising, she said.

“I am worried that exploding outbreaks, like these two in (Vaughan) were more likely to happen because restrictions were delayed,” she said. “I am also worried that instead of small outbreaks, we are now seeing more and more exploding outbreaks, where you go from less than five to 20 or to 40 or more in a week.”

Dr. Alanna Fitzgerald-Husek, the region's associate medical officer of health, said this kind of “considerable variability” --with some outbreaks consisting of only a few cases and others expanding more rapidly --happened in previous surges of the coronavirus, too.

Case counts are on the rise in nearly all sectors, including institutions, workplaces and schools, and in the City of Vaughan especially, she said.

“We are concerned and saddened to see case counts reach these levels again in some of our institutions,” she said, adding it’s important everyone follows public health measures in every setting to help prevent these large outbreaks.

“Lower cases in our community overall will help reduce the possibility of outbreaks in our institutions.”