Four residents of a Care Centre in South Africa, one of which is 100 years old, and five of the staff who work there all tested positive for COVID-19 and all have since recovered.
Western Cape, South Africa (09 June 2020) – Amongst all the bad news and continuous updates of climbing statistics and ever-increasing deaths, comes a beautiful story that provides hope in a time of lockdowns and COVID-19. Four residents of Woodside Care Centre, one of which is 100 years old, and five of the staff who work there all tested positive for COVID-19 and all have since recovered.
Woodside Care Centre is an assisted living facility attached to the Woodside Village in Rondebosch. The facility provides a home away from home for up to 43 people where they receive the love and care they need while in their twilight years. Some have dementia or Alzheimer’s disease, while others can no longer care for themselves living on their own. Each has their own story, and most of them are over eighty, with some close to 100 years old.
When the virus started appearing locally, and the threat to elderly became apparent, the decision was made to implement an early lockdown, and the Care Centre was closed two weeks before official lockdown to any non-essential services, visitors and family to protect the residents.
According to Woodside Care Centre manager, Sister Lindsay Donnachie, “Keeping the Centre in full lockdown and not allowing families or friends to visit was extremely tough for all involved, but we wanted to protect the residents, staff and ultimately the entire village from the virus. Together with the Centre’s management team, we determined that a lockdown was the only way to do this.
“However, this virus is incredibly contagious, and it is impossible to lock everyone away entirely. During Level 5 of lockdown, it became apparent that the staff and residents had all been exposed to the virus.”
If the statistics and reports from around the globe are anything to go by, the situation could have been extremely serious for the Centre, and extreme measures had to be put in place. These included bringing in the health and safety services of Vlame Occupational Health & Safety to assist with implementing all the necessary protocols.
According to Vlame’s CEO and health and safety specialist, Jaco Wessels, “It was critical to ensure that the virus was contained as we were dealing with high-risk individuals.”
There were several elements that Wessels ensured happened, which included putting all staff in quarantine and ensuring that all were tested so that the team knew what they were dealing with. A new set of contract staff had to be hired to manage the centre while the infected staff were in quarantine, and no one was allowed to enter the facility from the outside. The contract staff had to stay on-site and in the centre.
“It was this early detection and quick containment, plus the flexibility and cooperation from the Centre’s management team, that ensured that the virus was contained, therefore protecting all the people who live at Woodside Village.
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“It is critical to have a quick reaction in these circumstances to ensure that exposure to the virus is limited, as well as to ensure that everyone is tested and monitored on an ongoing basis, with regular checkups,” said Wessels.
Wessels went on to say that the willingness of the Centre’s management team to react immediately is what made the difference and what lead to the positive outcome achieved versus that of other care centres.
“The protocols to be implemented are fairly standard, and I acted as a guide and facilitator to ensure these were implemented. What changed the game in Woodside’s favour was the instant cooperation and willingness to step up. The Centre can be extremely proud of this,” added Wessels.
He also added that the residents and staff clearly have good strong immune systems as only four residents contracted the virus, and five staff members tested positive, with three displaying symptoms and becoming ill. The good news is that all have recovered fully with none of them having to be hospitalised.
Karen Brodovchy, the daughter of one of the Centre’s residents, commended the management and staff for the way in which they dealt with this crisis.
“Thank you to all at the Care Centre for everything they did to ensure the safety of our family members. The difficult situation was handled extremely well, and there was a plan in place to accommodate the ever-changing scenarios. We are thrilled to hear that everyone has recovered.”
A sense of calm has been restored to the Care Centre as the staff all return to work, grateful that nothing serious happened, and thankful to the team of contract staff who stepped in and looked after the residents while they quarantined and recovered.
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