At the Rotterdam nursing home De Leeuwenhoek, where 22 residents died in a short time in March, chaos and panic arose at the beginning of the corona crisis. Nevertheless, the organization did everything that could have been expected at that time and followed the guidelines. This is evident from an independent investigation on Thursday.
In early April, the nursing home made the news because a large number of elderly people with dementia had succumbed in a short time, presumably due to COVID-19. Sources within the nursing home claimed that the leadership was insufficiently prepared for the coronavirus outbreak, and staff spoke of “negligence” at the time.
Care provider and welfare organization Stichting Humanitas, of which De Leeuwenhoek is a part, has had an independent study into the weeks in March, in consultation with the Healthcare and Youth Inspectorate (IGJ).
This shows that De Leeuwenhoek was one of the first nursing homes in the Netherlands to be hit hard and fast by the coronavirus. That has led to shock, chaos and even panic, according to the report, particularly in the second half of March. And during that period things did not go well.
Caring staff were not well attuned to each other
Little was known about the virus and the team of nursing staff, some of which consisted of flex workers, was not well-matched.
What also did not help was that relatives of residents increased the pressure from outside because they had little confidence in De Leeuwenhoek, reinforced by the fact that after the outbreak physical contact with the residents was no longer possible.
The report states that Humanitas subsequently took all measures that could reasonably be expected at that time and that all guidelines were followed. Why there has been such a rapid and major outbreak, according to the report, is partly because De Leeuwenhoek is a nursing home with “residents and relatives from all over the world who ensure a lively house, with many activities, festivities and a high level of involvement. of neighborhood and church “. Partly because of this, the residents had an increased risk of infection.
Humanitas has meanwhile discussed the results of this study with the IGJ.
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