By Canadian Press

Seniors advocate to release review of COVID-19 outbreaks at B.C. care facilities

Oct 6, 2021 | 2:06 AM

VICTORIA — British Columbia’s seniors advocate is set to release a review of COVID-19 outbreaks in the province’s care facilities.  

Isobel Mackenzie said last spring the review will examine more than two dozen of the worst COVID-19 outbreaks at care facilities for seniors to better understand what happened.

Recent data posted by the province’s Centre for Disease Control says there were 368 COVID-19 outbreaks at B.C. care facilities from January 2020 to September 2021 and 1,092 deaths of residents.

Mackenzie has said factors leading to the outbreaks could be results of the age and size of buildings, whether residents shared rooms, staffing levels, sick leave policies for workers, infection control protocols, and the age and conditions of the residents.

The B.C. government says it has embarked on initiatives to hire more care facility staff and it is aiming to have more single rooms available for residents.

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Mackenzie says she has been heartened by the public’s response to calls for improvements to long-term care. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 6, 2021.

The Canadian Press