Report Details Profound Failures, War Zone-Like Conditions, ‘Baffling Mistakes’ At Mass. VA Facility
The 174-page report on Holyoke Soldiers’ Home, ordered by Gov. Charlie Baker, paints the picture of a facility devoid of leadership during the most consequential days of the outbreak and plagued by long-festering management issues that came to a head during the pandemic.
Boston Globe:
Independent Report Slams Handling Of Coronavirus Outbreak At Holyoke Soldiers’ Home; Witness Describes Walking The Veterans ‘To Their Death’
The residents of the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home stormed Normandy, stood guard at the Nuremberg trials at the end of World War II, and fought through the jungles of Vietnam. But in late March, many of these veterans again faced conditions that investigators likened to a “war zone,” this time inside the state-run long-term care facility where they had sought dignity and care in their final years. (Krueger and Stout, 6/24)
WBUR:
Baker Reacts To 'Gut-Wrenching' Holyoke Soldiers' Home Report
A visibly perturbed Gov. Charlie Baker announced the findings of a nearly three-month-long investigation into major failings at the Holyoke Soldier's Home, findings he called "nothing short of gut-wrenching." (Brown, 6/24)
In other news —
WBUR:
3 Children's Home Staffers Charged In Death Of 16-Year-Old
Three former staff members of a Michigan youth home have been charged in the death of a 16-year-old Black boy who died last month after employees sat on his chest, abdomen and legs in an effort to restrain him. An autopsy report released Wednesday by the Kalamazoo medical examiner's office ruled the suffocation death of Cornelius Fredericks a homicide. The examination revealed it was the result of "restraint asphyxia," caused by multiple people using their weight to pin the boy down. (Romo, 6/25)
