Ontario sends nearly $90,000 to Whitby retirement homes
Published April 18, 2022 at 2:10 pm
The Ford Government is sending nearly $90,000 to six private, for-profit retirement homes in Whitby to fund upgrades to their COVID-19 protocols.
Almost one-third of these funds are earmarked for Schlegel Village’s (owned by prolific PC donor James Schlegel) Village of Taunton Mills.
With the Province now gripped by a sixth wave, as confirmed by Ontario’s top doc Dr. Kieran Moore, and as the Region advises residents to continue wearing masks, the Ford government is sticking to its guns and staying open with plans to manage COVID-19 long term.
Meanwhile roughly 40,000 new COVID-19 cases have been reported province-wide in the last two weeks, including in Ford’s own cabinet after Pickering-Uxbridge MPP and Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy’s positive test March 31 following days of campaign stops at a school, a cricket tournament and a long term care home among other events.
While new cases rates are rising all the time, high vaccination rates are keeping most of those cases mild. There are currently 1,301 people in Ontario hospitals with COVID-19, 202 of whom require intensive care.
Part this commitment to stay open included sending private businesses $18 million in taxpayer funding. The first round of this money, earmarked for licensed retirement homes, was reiterated by Whitby MPP and Chief Government Whip Lorne Coe April 14 as he provided details on the local breakdown.
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This first batch of cash is set to be used for retirement homes to upgrade their infection containment personal protective equipment (PPE). Ontario-wide these funds will be spent of the province’s 777 retirement homes. The Whitby retirement homes are set to receive $87,332 of these funds across six residences.
Firstly, Amica Whitby at 200 Kenneth Hobbs Ave will receive $12,799. This home has been licensed under the current ownership since 2015.
The latest Retirement Home Regulatory Authority (RHRA) inspection in December 2021 found multiple infection control, and training failures nearly two years into the pandemic. Amica Whitby has reported four COVID-19 outbreaks. The second was the longest stretching on nearly four months from December to March 2021.
Glassdoor, an anonymous employer rating database, gives Amica Whitby a single star out of five from employees. Current and former employees, some with up to 8 years experience, allege sexual harassment, racial discrimination, overworked and underpaid nursing staff and “incompetent” management.
Amica as a whole is ranked much higher than its Whitby location at 3.8 stars. Amica made $116 million in revenue last year, per marketing analyst service ZoomInfo. An apartment at Amica Whitby cost between $3,600 and $5,200 a month.
Next, Chartwell Colonial Retirement Residence is set to receive $10,178. Chartwell, listed on Glassdoor as a worth between $500 million and $1 billion as a company, has operated their 105-person Whitby location since 2012.
Their last RHRA inspection in December 3 found no violations. The Whitby location specifically has no Glassdoor reviews, but company-wide they’re rated at 3.2 stars. Chartwell Colonial has reported two COVID-19 outbreaks. Chartwell charges between $1,595 and $5,400 per month for a one-bedroom suite.
Third, Lakeridge Heights Retirement Residence is getting $12,471. Lakeridge Heights is a newer outfit only licenced since last August. A RHRA inspection in November, the only one so far, noted behavior management concerns. This home saw one outbreak lasting nearly a month in January.
Owner All Senior Care scores a 2.8/5 on Glassdoor with no reviews from Whitby. All Senior Care generates $48 million USD in revenue per ZoomInfo.
Lynde Creek Manor is up next. They’re set to receive the least of the six homes with $10,451 on its way. The last RHRA report found no issues during an inspection in October 2021. A suite at Lynde Creek runs their residents between $3,000 and $5,200 per month. Lynde Creek has an active COVID-19 outbreak as of this writing and has lost fewer than five residents.
By far the largest investment is going to The Village of Taunton Mills with the 184 bed home set to receive $28,962. Operated since 2012, the Village of Taunton Mills is owned and operated by Schlegel Villages, listed as a $100 to $500 million company on Glassdoor. Schelgel Villages as a whole garnered a 3.4/5 rating on the employer rating site.
An RHRA report from last August found fault in Taunton Mills’s failure to create a plan of care for residents. However these concerns seem laid to rest in a later November report, which found no failures.
Of note, Schlegel Villages CEO James Schlegel is a prolific Progressive Conservative donor sending $20,000 to the to-be Health-Minister Christine Elliott’s PC leadership election campaign in 2015 and $50,000 to the PC Party since 2007. Schlegel Villages have made smaller political contributions to the Liberals and NDP as well.
The Ford Government later gave Schlegel a seat on the Incident Management System (IMS) Long-Term Care Table, alongside politicians, doctors and other CEOs to coordinate LTC response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Finally, VIVA Whitby Shores Retirement Community, a 154 bed home will get $12,471. VIVA Retirement communities scores a 3.8/5 on Glassdoor. Zoominfo lists the company with $60 million in revenue. Whitby Shores is fairly new on the scene first licensed in 2020.
The RHRA found in July that Whitby Shores failed to comply with plan of care reassessments for residents every six months as required. Whitby Shore has had one COVID-19 outbreak and lost no patients.
The Ford Government believes the addition funds the home are set to receive will ensure, “Our loved ones, visitors and staff are gaining the support they need to keep everyone safe.” The province has sent the retirement home sector $68.9 million since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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