"Very elderly" care home resident dies from covid

Thursday 17 December 2020

A "very elderly" care home resident, with underlying health conditions, has passed away from covid-19, the Health Minister has confirmed.

In a statement, Deputy Richard Renouf said: “I would like to extend my sincere condolences to the family, friends and carers of the deceased at this sad time.

“Their next of kin have been informed and are being supported at this sad time. They were very elderly, with underlying long-term health conditions, and had been under the care of the health services for some time. It is devastating to lose a loved one and all of us in Health and Community Services are saddened by this loss.

“We would like to offer our condolences and will not be releasing any further details about this patient, to protect their confidentiality.”

He added that the Government would continue to report all deaths where covid-19 is mentioned on the death certificate following a process of formal registration by the Superintendent Registrar.

“This includes all cases where the virus is recorded, whether as the primary cause or in combination with other health conditions. The Government will continue to report deaths that have occurred both in the care of Health and Community Services and in the community,” Deputy Renouf continued.

Going on to explain the proces, he added: “A death registration is based on information submitted to the Superintendent Registrar by a certifying doctor and by an application to register a death by the next of kin via a funeral director.

“Before this registration can take place, all information submitted must be scrutinised and verified by medics. This means that there can be a period of time between the date of death and the registration of that death.

“Information on the deaths is taken from the official register held by the Office of the Superintendent Registrar. This methodology has been agreed with Statistics Jersey, the Office of the Superintendent Registrar and the Deputy Viscount. It is also in line with the UK Office of National Statistics methodology.

“If an inquest is required to establish the cause of death, there may, in some instances, be a delay of several weeks or months before a cause of death is established and registered.”