CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) RESOURCE CENTER Read More
Add To Favorites

COVID-19 virus outbreak in North Canaan kills eight nursing home residents and infects dozens of others

Hartford Courant - 11/16/2021

At least eight residents of a North Canaan nursing home have died of COVID-19 during an outbreak of the virus that spread through the facility over the last six weeks.

Since late September, Geer Village Senior Community has recorded 67 positive cases of COVID-19 among its residents, of whom 56 recovered. As of Monday, there were still three active cases of the virus, out of a total of 70 residents. The COVID-19 outbreak occurred in Geer’s skilled nursing facility, and the nursing home said that it has not impacted its assisted living facility, Geer Lodge.

Kevin O’Connell, chief executive officer of Geer Village Senior Community, said in a statement that the eight residents who died of COVID-19 had “serious underlying health issues.”

“Unfortunately, this outbreak occurred prior to the booster being available,” he said. “87 of the 89 infected staff and residents combined were fully vaccinated so we are obviously concerned we experienced some level of waning immunity.”

Since Sept. 30, 22 Geer staff members were infected with COVID-19; all recovered.

Long-term care facilities in Connecticut were particularly hard hit during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, with nearly three-quarters of virus-related deaths in nursing homes and assisted living facilities.

Of more than 200 nursing homes across the state, 10 — or roughly 5% — had at least one COVID-19 case among residents from Oct. 27 to Nov. 9, the period for which the most recent state data is available. In total, 45 COVID-19 cases were reported out of nearly 19,000 nursing home residents, an overall positivity rate of about 0.2%.

In early October, Geer announced that a full round of testing on residents and staff had resulted in three positive COVID-19 cases, all of which were among fully vaccinated individuals. Working with the Torrington Area Health District and state Epidemiology and Emerging Infections Program, the nursing home said it would conduct additional rounds of testing to mitigate the spread of the virus.

In a notification on its website, Geer said that its staff is 99% vaccinated and all employees are masking and “practicing heightened infection control procedures.”

“Geer is a community of highly vulnerable residents,” the nursing home emphasized.

In line with Department of Public Health recommendations, booster shots can only be given to eligible staff and residents 14 days after the conclusion of the outbreak, O’Connell noted.

All visits remain on hold until further notice, though Geer noted that it is permitting virtual and window visits. The facility continues to test its residents and staff for COVID-19 biweekly.

Eliza Fawcett can be reached at elfawcett@courant.com. Courant staff writer Alex Putterman contributed to this report.

©2021 Hartford Courant. Visit courant.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Nationwide News