NDP calls for investigation into Sudbury's Countryside Extendicare

Hamilton Spectator

25-04-2025

Enter the building on Algonquin Road. The lobby fireplace and soft furniture appear friendly and warm. The sign says 'Welcome to Extendicare Helping People Live Better.'
However, the state of affairs indicates not all is well at Countryside Extendicare, Sudbury's newest long-term care home with 256 beds. It opened last year after Extendicare closed its facility on Falconbridge Road.
'The place looks absolutely beautiful from the outside, but what goes on, on the inside, is a totally different story,' Kim Blanchette said about Countryside.
Blanchette's father is at Countryside and she spoke to The Star shortly after problems began to surface.
A visit by assessors prompted the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care to issue a cease admissions order on Dec. 16, 2024. As a result, Countryside cannot accept new patients until non-compliance issues are corrected.
Four months later, the order remains in effect.
Meanwhile, families and people connected to residents living at Countryside Extendicare continue to be concerned.
And Sudbury's two NDP MPPs - Jamie West (Sudbury) and France Gelinas (Nickel Belt) - said in a letter to Natalia Kusendova-Bashta, Ontario's minister of Long-Term Care, that they want the province to investigate Countryside.
They wrote that while Countryside management and the province have said many issues have been addressed, families are not convinced. The MPPs said they met the Extendicare Countryside Family Council on April 9.
'During that meeting, members of the council shared distressing concerns about the actual conditions in the home,' they wrote. 'Families describe the situation as nothing short of a crisis, and shared examples of residents feeling neglected, unsafe, and unheard.
'Furthermore, the families stated that these concerns have not been addressed, and they are frustrated that the compliance orders have been lifted despite no visible improvements.
'The contrast between what is being reported by Extendicare's senior management and the experiences being shared by those on the ground is stark. We respectfully request that your office investigate the growing discrepancies between the reports shared by senior management at Extendicare Countryside and the troubling accounts we are hearing from residents and their families.'
They said the families are concerned about a range of issues, including poorly trained staff, poor wound care and hygiene, and inconsistent feeding practices.
Worried about her father
Blanchette said she has noticed many of these issues with her father, including poor hygiene. She is concerned about fungal problems and the possible presence of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteria.
MRSA is resistant to many antibiotics so it can be difficult to treat.
'A lot of the residents I have talked to are so happy that all this information has come out publicly. I am very tired right now, as I just got home from Parry Sound, visiting with my husband's almost 96-year-old mother.
'She's in the Lakeland Long Term Care Facility, attached to the Parry Sound Hospital. She is being very well looked after there. Quite the contrast between both long-term care facilities. Just the quality of the meals is a significant contrast.'
Blanchette said she takes some comfort that problems at Countryside have become public and that it 'wasn't just me going through such stress … and feeling so helpless ...
'My dad now has an open wound on his private area, and was put on four different medications to help heal his severe diaper rash.'
Blanchette reported this problem to an RN on Oct. 28, 2024. She was called a 'couple days later to advise me that, after Dad was showered, they would be spraying a barrier cream on him … this is only the fourth infection he's had since entering the Countryside Extendicare since May 22, 2024. We have been dealing with a bed sore on his heel and two large toenail infections since June.
'No one told me about MRSA for three months, until his clothes piled up over his laundry hamper the Extendicare put in his room for quarantined laundry. A PSW came rushing at me, in the hallway, and said I couldn't put his clothing in the regular laundry and she grabbed it all out and put it back in his room.
'I asked why my Dad's laundry was quarantined and she had no idea. She said to go to the nurses' station and inquire there. The RN looked on the computer, and couldn't find anything about the quarantine order, so she told me to go to the Owl's Nest and speak to the RN there.
'This nurse, Jessica, I think, looked into it, and said 'Yes, they did a swab on Aug. 20, and it came back indicating MRSA.' This was now the middle of November and this is the first I heard that the infection had developed into MRSA.'
Concerns growing
Don Bourré also spoke to The Star after Countryside's problems became common knowledge. He attended a town hall last year at the facility to learn more.
'My girlfriend's mother is 97,' Bourré said. 'She was living in her own home up until recently' when she suffered a broken hip.
The elderly woman stayed at the Clarion Hotel for a time, where the St. Joseph's Continuing Care Centre was treating patients temporarily. She then moved into Countryside.
'Prior to the meeting, we were extremely happy with Countryside. We thought Countryside was the Taj Mahal,' Bourré said.
'But getting the notice and attending the (town hall) meeting, fear has been set in. It was not there before. Hearing the horror stories, we are starting to doubt. Is it possible that it is happening more than what is being reported? This was an eye-opener.
'What struck me the most – I am basing this on my own work experience – is that they need to tackle this right away, and get things back into shape. As the former VP of a large company, I looked after 165 stores and know how to fix things fast.
'These complaints that were brought forward by the (town hall) audience should have been resolved. Why are issues lingering? It baffles me. That they needed an outside group to come in and tell them things are bad … I don't understand. My mother-in-law had a fall … now we are forced to reassess how it happened and what was done.'
Laura Tamblyn-Watts, president and CEO of CanAge, is committed to better elder care and seniors' rights. She said the concerns expressed are not just a Countryside problem.
'At CanAge, we hear daily about the ongoing concerns of people in long-term care, the worries of their families and the mounting frustration that the levels of care and support needed for our most vulnerable are not being met,' Tamblyn-Watts said. 'Care staff will say the same. They are often stretched to the limit and have only minutes per resident to get people up, dressed, medicated, bathed and moving. It's not sustainable for anyone.
'New long-term care homes such as this one may have the benefit of more modern facilities, but (has) the risks of new staff and systems failing. It is clear that this home is in trouble and help needs to be given to the residents as well as staff support.
'In a home where people are completely reliant on others for their well-being, residents and families often fear complaining and being labelled a troublemaker. While this should never happen, of course, it happens regularly ...
'In the end, the core issue is that seniors' care isn't either funded or seen as high-priority work, with very high staff turnover and very low wages. Until we start fixing the whole of home and community care, helping family caregivers financially and recruiting and retaining well-trained staff with good jobs, the story will never change.
'The good news is that we know exactly how to change it. The bad news is that despite building new long-term care homes, we are not yet able to provide the kind of quality care our vulnerable seniors need.'
How complaints addressed
The Star contacted Countryside with a series of questions about how it responds to concerns. Below is a list of those questions and Countryside's answers:
Q. How does Extendicare respond to complaints?
A. We value the feedback of our residents and their families and encourage them to share concerns as they arise.
Going forward, our focus is on listening more closely, increasing opportunities for direct engagement with our residents and families, and ensuring we report more frequently on home initiatives, care programs and how we are addressing challenges.
Q. Is there a protocol or standard operating procedure?
A. Our process includes:
- Thorough investigations of all complaints brought to our attention.
- Providing a response within 10 days, unless an extension is requested by the home if more time is needed to investigate properly.
- Tracking the progress of complaints investigations.
- Regular reporting back to the Ministry and our Resident Council and Family Council on the status of items of concern.
Q. Is what we are seeing a result of the transfer from Falconbridge to Countryside sort of growing pains?
A. The recent transition of our residents and team members to a new home, along with welcoming 50 additional residents, created new challenges that we are actively addressing.
Like other healthcare providers in Northern Ontario, we also face challenges recruiting permanent team members due to the health human resources shortage, requiring the use of agency staff to meet and exceed provincial requirements.
Q. Will those who expressed concerns be assured prompt attention, assurances and corrections?
A. We are grateful for the open dialogue and support from our partners in the Ministry and will continue to work to strengthen trust with our residents and their loved ones. We will provide regular status updates and continue to seek feedback on our path forward.
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