Geneva woman defends embattled Bria in face of COVID-19 lawsuits

GENEVA – While Bria of Geneva seems to be ground zero for COVID-19 deaths – 27 as of last week – for one Geneva woman, the nursing home has done a wonderful job taking care of her mother.

Denise Ugaste’s mother Vasso Danos, 82, who has multiple sclerosis, has been living at Bria of Geneva, at 1101 E. State St., Genva, for 3 1/2 years, and always received good care.

Ugaste said she wanted to share a different view of the embattled nursing home, especially in the face of six wrongful death lawsuits, alleging its staff did not do enough to prevent deaths from the coronavirus.

“They are clearly devastated. No one wants this. I have seen the grief on the faces of the staff,” Ugaste said. “I feel for them. I feel for the families. And I just wanted you to hear another perspective from our family. We call them our Bria family and they are taking care of my mom in a way we never could.”

Ugaste said she blames Gov. JB Pritzker for not providing enough personal protective equipment and tests to nursing homes.

“I blame the governor, I blame the state for their ... lack of response to what we knew from seeing what happened in Italy and in New York,” Ugaste said. “We knew it was striking the older population with a vengeance and we should have had these nursing homes prepared by March or early April.”

In a May 3 interview on Face the Nation, Pritzker faulted the White House for shortages in coronavirus testing supplies.

“As a state, we’re having to go out into the market and compete with every other state to get swabs and VTM (Virus Transport Medium) re-agents. I wish that the White House had stepped up earlier and I think they still have an opportunity to do so, when it comes to reagent.”

Viral Transport Medium allows for the safe transfer of viruses. A reagent is a chemical used in a reaction to test patient swab samples to determine a positive or negative COVID-19 result.

'We are devastated'

Bria staff called her to say it had its first person test positive on April 17.

“They said, ‘We are devastated to say we had our first covid. We thought we would be able to beat this,’” Ugaste said. “I knew what precautions they were already taking. I had been told what they were doing.”

She said she listened to Pritzker’s daily press conferences and assumed that the state would be sending supplies to nursing home, especially testing.

“When the virus hit, Bria had nothing,” Ugaste said. “Even though they were the most vulnerable population, they did not have testing. … The state was giving them 10 … That is absolutely no way to respond to a nursing home when they have their first positive and within days, many many more.”

Bria finally got about 50 tests from Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital in Geneva and Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital, because the medical director, Dr. Philip Branshaw, called to ask for assistance, Ugaste said.

Bria begins testing

That weekend of April 25 and 26 is when Bria started testing, Ugaste said.

And that Sunday, April 26, a week and a half after that first positive case, Bria called to tell Ugaste that her mother did not want to eat dinner. That was the first thing they noticed when residents would come down with coronavirus, no appetite.

Danos still had no glaring symptoms, no fever or shortness of breath. They tested her for the virus and were waiting results.

But the next day, Monday, they called again to tell Ugaste her mother was refusing breakfast and her blood pressure was really low.

“Tuesday, April 28, it was so bad, it hit her out of the blue like a ton of bricks,” Ugaste said. “They called and said this might be the end of life for her. Mom was going downhill very fast.”

Danos tested positive for COVID-19, but survived, and tested negative this week, Ugaste said.

“Bria was doing the best they could with what they had to work with. I feel their pain. I feel their frustration. I feel their fear,” Ugaste said. “But from what I saw, from what I heard and my experience there for 3 1/2 years, I never saw a neglectful moment for my mom. … I don’t think the nursing homes would have had the devastation if they were the first priority.”

Denise Ugaste’s husband is an attorney and State Rep. Daniel Ugaste, R-Geneva.

But no one should think that Danos, Daniel Ugaste’s mother-in-law got special treatment because of his profession and position in the General Assembly, Denise Ugaste said.

“When we chose Bria, and when we would visit Bria, I made it a point to make sure I looked around for cleanliness,” Denise Ugaste said. “(Administrator) Patti (Long) would say to me, ‘There’s no room here for someone not caring for residents as if they were their own mother and father.’ That is comforting to family members whose mom is in there.”