St Basil’s aged care grandma found after post-diagnosis disappearance
A COVID-positive grandmother who went “missing” after being moved from her aged care facility has been found after her concerned son said he’d been unable to locate her for a week.
HS Coronavirus News
Don't miss out on the headlines from HS Coronavirus News. Followed categories will be added to My News.
An elderly woman whose son could not find her after she tested positive for COVID-19 at the plagued St Basil’s facility last week has been located after she was transferred to the Epworth in Richmond.
Federal sources told the Herald Sun Marija Rukavina was moved there on Saturday following consultation with her daughter.
Families of St Basil’s residents will be invited to a group Zoom call on Sunday afternoon to help reinforce communications and ensure families have the detail they need.
Ms Rukavina’s son, Ivan, told the Herald Sun on Saturday he had no idea where his mother Marija is after she tested positive for COVID-19 at St Basil’s last week.
He said he had spent all week calling hospitals in the hopes of locating the 86-year-old grandmother after his queries at the aged care facility went unanswered.
“It’s a disaster the way the whole thing is panning out,” he said.
“I don’t know if it’s legal not to contact next of kin and family.”
Mr Rukavina went to the Fawkner aged care home on Saturday in the hopes of catching a glimpse of her or finding a clue to her whereabouts.
He said the sight of his mother’s room with the light off and the curtains half closed had only confirmed his worst fears.
“It’s like holding people hostage, it’s like the worst version of human rights,” he said.
“I’ve got a baby two weeks from being born and two kids asking me, ‘where’s Grandma’?”
“Families are suffering here.”
He said the residents used to have access to iPads to make video calls but he hasn’t heard anything from Marija since she tested positive.
Marija has been a resident at St Basil’s for four years, but this isn’t the first time Mr Rukavina has had concerns about how the facility is run.
In July last year Mr Rukavina made headlines after footage he took of a cat eating food about to be served to the residents was shared online.
READ MORE:
HOW VIRUS IS SPREADING THROUGH MELBOURNE