FAIRFIELD — The 2020-21 Solano County civil grand jury concluded residents of long-term nursing care facilities suffered unnecessary mental and health issues because they were kept away from their families during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Isolation
brought about by Covid-19 lockdowns caused unexpected mental and physical
health issues,” the June 3 report released by the Solano County Superior Court
states.
Dr.
Bela Matyas, the county public health officer, said in an interview Monday that
he completely agrees with the finding and said his department had great
concerns about the state policy restricting visitors.
“That
is a very valid point and it was something . . . in Solano County we were not
very happy with,” said Matyas, who added that the county issued no restrictions
on visitations to congregant facilities. He said the county was particularly
unhappy about those care facility residents who died alone.
Matyas
noted the same kind of precautions required for staff could have been implemented
for visitors. That noted, he said he thinks the state reacted in an effort to
save lives, and eventually eased many of the visitor restrictions when it
realized it was possible to do so safely.
The
grand jury recommended that in any future crisis, the county Public Health
Division have the authority to establish “stringent screening protocols . . .
to protect residents once visitors are allowed to enter the facilities.”
Matyas
said the department is in full agreement.
“Largely,
I agree with all (the grand jury’s) finding,” Matyas said. “I don’t think
anything they said was untrue.”
The
grand jury also concluded that nursing staff and other health care employees
“need more training in infection control techniques including personal
protection equipment use.”
The
report states, “staff members have not been properly trained in implementing
proper infectious disease protocols.”
The
grand jury recommended that if requested by a facility, the “Solano County
Division of Public Health provide support for improved staff training as well
as ongoing mentoring.”
Matyas,
while agreeing, said there is a financial reality that needs to be kept in
mind. The facilities do not have the same resources as hospitals, for example,
and hiring the best trained, additional training and other related costs are
being balanced against keeping facility costs down.
The
report also states that if authorized by the state, the county Public Health
Division should help establish a system for monitoring the implementation of a
new law that requires, among other points, “a plan . . . for infection
prevention quality control.”
Other
elements of Assembly Bill 2644, which went into effect Jan. 1, are to “ensure
all health care professionals receive infection prevention and control training
on an annual basis . . . have a full-time infection preventionist on staff to
make recommendations and implement policies within the facility for infection
control.”
The
state Department of Public Health has oversight powers for the implementation
of the law.
The
report further states as a finding that “evidence provided by health professionals
indicates staff brought (the coronavirus) into facilities, and recommended that
if a facility requests, the county should “establish and continue to provide
more stringent screening protocols of all staff.”
That
was the primary cause of the largest and most deadly outbreak in the county at
the Windsor Vallejo Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
“We
were the first county to post guidance for long-term care facilities and for
hospitals (during the pandemic),” Matyas said.
The
fifth and final finding issued by the grand jury states that “Ombudsman staff
did not visit the skilled nursing facilities in Solano County from March 16,
2020, through Aug. 31, 2020.”
The
report recommends, that because ombudsman staff can receive a waiver to enter
locked-down facilities, that they should continue those duties.
“It
is concerning that during a pandemic such as the one we are currently
continuing to experience, local county agencies have such limited authority in
keeping the vulnerable residents in nursing home facilities safe. It would be
advantageous for the county, state and cities to work together to apply the
laws and regulations that have been put in place to protect this population,”
the report concluded.
As
of Monday, the required responses from county Public Health, the Department of
Health and Social Services and the Ombudsman Administration had either not been
filed or had not been posted by the court.
Matyas
said his department did send in a response, which included the notations that
all recommendations concerning the department had already been implemented.
He
also noted that despite the concerns raised in the grand jury report, only 64
of the 244 Covid-related deaths in the county were residents in long-term care,
memory care or boarding care facilities.
Another
14 have died at state prisons in Vacaville, which are not under county
jurisdiction.
Most
people who have Covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus,
experience only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. Some people,
especially older adults and those with underlying health problems, experience
more severe illness such as pneumonia and at times, death.
The
vast majority of people recover. The World Health Organization reports people
with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe
illness may take three to six weeks to recover.
Solano
County Daily Republic
By Todd R. Hansen
June 10, 2021
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