The site of one of Manitoba’s worst COVID-19 disasters is now accepting new residents.
Maples Personal Care home — which was the site of an outbreak in late 2020 that ultimately killed 56 residents — will be permitted to add one new resident per day, Monday through Friday, for the next three months, the province said Tuesday.
Manitoba Health and Seniors Care said new admissions selected to go to Maples will include those in hospital, and also those in the public who are on waiting lists for long-term care beds, with the goal of freeing up bed space and alleviating surgery wait times.
Despite a report saying the care home and its parent company Revera “failed at every level” during the outbreak, the province has tackled 17 recommendations to bring Maples up to snuff and said last month that all short-term changes had already been completed.
As part of the approved admissions plan, the facility is required to regularly report to the province and the Winnipeg Health Authority on the status of new admissions, and its licence will remain under review.
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Provincial officials will continue both scheduled and unscheduled reviews of the facility to make sure it meets provincial standards and that residents are receiving quality care.
In a statement Tuesday, Maples MLA Mintu Sandhu put the blame for the care home’s struggles on his Progressive Conservative opponents in the Manitoba legislature, and criticized the government for allowing new patients.
“Manitobans will never forget how the PC government let the situation at Maples escalate to a tragedy, but unfortunately the PCs have once again failed to learn from their own mistakes,” said Sandhu.
“It’s clear that governments must do more to ensure our seniors and elders are getting the care they deserve, but instead of improving quality of care, increasing staffing levels, and ensuring better oversight, the PCs are allowing Maples to accept more patients while its license is still under review.
“Manitobans deserve a seniors’ advocate and a government that is committed to improving care for seniors and holding personal care homes accountable.”
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