Inside the troubled nursing home where 70 died and body bags piled up[NJ]

The New York Times ^ | 19 April 2020 | Tracey Tully, Brian M. Rosenthal, Matthew Goldstein and Robert Gebeloff

[Theoria]

When the coronavirus outbreak hit one of the largest and most troubled nursing homes in the Northeast, coughing and feverish residents were segregated into a wing known as South 2. The sick quickly filled the beds there, so another wing, West 3, was also turned into a quarantine ward.

But the virus kept finding frail and older residents, and one culprit became clear: The workers themselves were likely spreading it as they moved between rooms and floors, outfitted with little or no protective equipment.

The nursing home, Andover Subacute and Rehabilitation Center II in Andover, N.J., which has 543 beds, was chronically short of staff and masks, and over the last two years it had received poor grades from federal and state inspectors. Residents were crowded three to a room, and as the outbreak worsened, so did sanitary conditions. Spilled food littered the floors.

Workers said they hurriedly made their rounds, dispensing medicine, changing bedsheets, feeding those who could not feed themselves and doing other tasks that brought them into close contact with residents.

Some workers bought rudimentary face shields from a recreation supervisor who purchased a box online for $160. By last week, employees were pleading for help from the government and for donations of personal protective equipment in Facebook posts.

But it was too late.

After receiving an anonymous tip last Monday, the police found 17 bodies in bags in a small holding room at the Andover facility.

[Theoria]

NJ not looking after the most vulnerable.

[Theoria]

'As of Sunday, about 40 percent of the 4,202 coronavirus deaths in New Jersey had been linked to long-term care facilities, and health officials have begun to focus on the role that workers have played in the spread of the outbreak.'

[SmokingJoe]

This is not a good time to be old and sick in NJ or NYC.

[rightwingintelligentsia]

In Pennsylvania, 56% of Corona virus deaths have been in nursing homes.

[Captain Compassion]

If I ever become burdensome best put me out on the ice. Better than the hell of these nursing homes.

[allwrong57]

I had a grandparent who was in a nursing home for years with alzeimers. I never want to put my children through that, the one thing I would like to change is for my kids to know him as I did, not as he was when they knew him.

I’d rather just die than go into a nursing home. Covid probably did most of them a favor.

[txrefugee]

Who was being paid to take care of these residents? They didn’t. They cashed their checks. That is theft. Arrest all those who failed to
their duty.

[Mr. Rabbit]

I honestly hope I just croak suddenly of a massive heart attack or stroke before I ever end up in one of these places. Every one I’ve been in has been utterly depressing.

[jmacusa]

Having worked in three nursing homes in NJ I can tell you the staff that works in the majority of these places are... well...subpar to say the least. There are some who do a good job but the hours are long, the pay is not that good and a nursing home isn't a hospital. It's the equivalent of a plumber trying to do surgery. The primary care givers are not RN's. They're just barely trained techs really, little more than baby sitters. I know this facility. Word gets around in any industry and the Andover facility has had numerous violations over the years long befor this Covid epidemic.

[stars & stripes forever]

QUESTION...

Was this a facility where residents paid mega $$$$$$ upfront to live there until they passed away? If so, the home may have reaped a windfall of cash.

[MAGAthon]

just turned on Mark Levin. he has Dr. John Ioannidis from Stanford with him! wonderful.

Dr. Ioannidis said in Italy 99% of those that died had comorbidities and there is now debate how many would have died anyway within a few days, etc.

enough NYT. you are exploiting the most vulnerable for your own nefarious political purposes.

FakeNYT - will you be focus-ing on every elderly person who dies from the flu in the future (you certainly ignored them in the past, and even in the current flu season, so I know you won’t. after all, this is Presidential election year. know what I mean?)

[jmacusa]

Another name for a nursing home: Heavens Waiting Room.

[proud2beconservativeinNJ]

As of Sunday, about 40 percent of the 4,202 coronavirus deaths in New Jersey had been linked to long-term care facilities

Governor Murphy, you and your administration have some responsibility for the care delivered in our long term facilities. Maybe you should have been focusing your attention to help these poor souls. Less time clamping down on drive through tulip farms or preventing your citizens going biking or using a trail hike in our parks.

[Freee-dame]

From what I have read, the nursing homes having the big numbers of deaths from the C-virus are often places where many, if not most, of the patients are paid for with Medicaid. Often they are privately owned. I have not read about any high cost continuing care facilities having deaths in numbers to attract any attention.

I would’ve like to know how many people dying from the nursing homes were already bedridden. A person who Is unable even to sit up has very little ability to fight off pneumonia when a flu or virus hits them.

Why are we not being given such statistics? We need information in order to make informed decisions about self-quarantining when our location is opened up.

[digger48]

My father was in one for a spell here in IN that was highly recommended by his Dr’s

My step-mother had to bring in her own cleaning supplies to keep the room clean

she accidentally dropped an M&M that rolled under his bed, so she just left it to see if it would get picked up

a month later, it was still there.

and don’t get me started on their “right to fall” policy that prohibited buzzers on the bed if someone who shouldn’t, got up on their own

they said they’d rather him lay in his own bodily waste than be bothered with someone needing to go to the restroom

[cherry]

pneumonia is the blessing of the aged....

I too will never go to a nursing home...told my spouse that....I really would rather die in the hospital or at home...

I hope these frail sickly elderly were not being kept alive artificially to soothe someone's concious....I hope they didn't have tube feedings and catheters, and wrist restraints...I hope people didn't act God like and try to make them live when clearly their bodies were saying..."no"....

who would wish that on your parents or grandparents?

if a virus can whiff over them and they die when it has little affect on others just means to me that their time was up, probably up a long time ago...

eventually, we will have to keep our elderly home with us, which will get the generations back in sync....it'll be too expensive to send them to these basic warehouse situations and when people are vulnerable the best place for them is home....

[FoxInSocks]

The workers themselves were likely spreading it as they moved between rooms and floors, outfitted with little or no protective equipment.

PPE doesn't do a whole lot to prevent cross-contamination. Washing hands goes a long way.

[palmer]

From what I have read, the nursing homes having the big numbers of deaths from the C-virus are often places where many, if not most, of the patients are paid for with Medicaid

These are shitholes. Medicaid underpays and they don't have adequate staff. They give everyone oxy to keep them quiet. If you soil, too bad, you'll sit for hours until someone comes to clean you. The infection rate was already enormous and unlike healthy people where it takes thousands of viruses to become infected, they are much more susceptible. The staff is susceptible because the patients shed a lot of viruses.

That's in stark contrast to the for-profit assisted living. Life is not good there because everyone is quarantined in their rooms. The lawyers write the rules and the rules say you can't even go outside for a breath of air, not even for a minute. But their patients are alive, 95-99% of them anyway.

[Freee-dame]

I hadn’t even considered the oxy situation in a nursing home. The medications that C-virus patients who need ICU, or ventilators or who die need to be included with the stats to be analyzed.

[slorunner]

My wife & I are in a facility which is one of 17 run by UPMC here in western PA. Not one case so far in any of their facilities. Good management and cooperation can work.