Elderly in retirement homes at risk of contracting virus through nurses

The island’s third-age observatory raised the alarm on Friday over the risks of coronavirus infection faced by the elderly in retirement homes who are treated by nurses who also work at public hospitals, which are predominantly dealing with coronavirus cases, and which have also been central targets of the virus outbreak.

The observatory and organized patients co-signed a letter sent to the Health and Labour Ministers, demanding immediate measures are taken to safeguard the health of those staying in retirement homes, which amount to some 6,000 elderly people islandwide.

President of the observatory, Dimos Antoniou, warned of the dangers associated with a potential spread of coronavirus in retirement homes, stressing that such a scenario would see multiple deaths of elderly residents who also suffer from underlying conditions.

“The issue is very serious and should be examined by the relevant authorities, from whom we did not have any update as to what is going on now in our retirement homes,” Antoniou told media on Friday.

Though nursing homes banned visits swiftly after coronavirus broke out on the island, relatives of the elderly residents have stressed that banning visits only go half way if the residents could also be in danger of contracting the virus by the nurses that take care of them.