Family protests Riverview nursing home where 20 residents have died with COVID-19 symptoms

RIVERVIEW, Mich. (FOX 2) - A Downriver nursing home continues to be hit hard by the coronavirus.

So far 20 residents of Rivergate Terrace in Riverview have died.

"I'm hurt, I'm terrified," said William Woods.

The family of 80-year-old Johnnie Woods says she died Sunday. She was a resident of Rivergate Terrace after having Covid-19 like symptoms but they could never get her tested.

"There is no testing done at the nursing homes, they are done at the hospital," said William. "The only ones that get tested positive are the ones that go to the hospital."

Johnnie's family and others protesting what they see as unacceptable circumstances at the facility, alleging lack of family notification, unclean facilities, inadequate staffing and misinformation. 

"As I'm walking by room by room, I'm watching these CNAs cry in the hallways not knowing what to do," said Nicole Claud, whose grandmother passed away. "I am watching these nurses at their wit's end not knowing what to do. The management here is mishandling everything."

"They had lied to us from the get go," William said.

FOX 2 spoke with the company that manages the nursing home and they said the same thing we keep hearing across the nation - the problem is getting access to tests.

"Testing has been restricted within the state," said Timothy Killian, spokesperson Life Care centers of America. "Today we just received a small batch of test kits that we are able to use on our residents. We have not yet received enough test kits to fully test the full population of residents within our facility. We mourn with these families we care deeply about all of our residents."

The company also denies the other allegations adding they're doing all they can, including isolating residents with symptoms

"Until we have testing we're limited in our ability to react entirely," Killian said.

At Rivergate Terrace one of two facilities owned by Life Care Centers of America in Riverview, there are currently 167 residents. Twenty have died with COVID-19-like symptoms and 17 people have tested positive for coronavirus while12 of those sent to the hospital and 36 staff have reported they have the disease.

"We're not trying to pretend that we're medical professionals," Claud said. "We just know what we've seen the last four days and what we've witnessed is walking down the hallway, I have video of room after room with the same precaution sign."

The Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory affairs says it's investigating the home but said it can't speak about that until they're done.
 
For the Woods family - like so many - they've lost something they cannot get back.

"I lost my mom," William said. "There's no words to explain... there's none."