“Treat in place” was the mantra pushed by federal health agencies, academic researchers and geriatric physicians who argued that hospitals are not friendly environments for the frail and elderly, and that outcomes for those transported to one can include bed sores, dehydration, infections, exhaustion and delirium.
But what thousands of U.S. nursing homes neglected — including Absolut Care of Aurora Park — was the other side of the coin. To treat in place requires having effective means of treatment, staff who know how to deploy that treatment and procedures to stop the spread of infection.
When the novel coronavirus pandemic struck, nursing homes did not swamp hospitals with patients. But neither did they prevent the deaths of more than 30,000 of their residents or, in many cases, even provide decent palliative care.
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