KANSAS CITY, Kan. — "Ridiculous, absurd and totally irresponsible" is how a Kansas City-area man characterized Riverbend Post-Acute Rehabilitation Center's decision to release his father from its facility two days before he died.
The Kansas City, Kansas, rehab center has been one of the Kansas City area's worst hot spots for COVID-19.
Carl Brewster, 88, was a patient there undergoing physical therapy to gain enough strength to use his wheelchair.
According to his son Steve Brewster, Carl, a Korean War veteran, was supposed to be released April 8.
Instead, Steve said Carl called on April 3 to say he was being released from Riverbend that day.
"It's just totally irresponsible," Steve said. "They let him come home with a chronic cough and essentially he died 48 hours later."
On the day of his release, Steve said his father was waiting alone in a hallway for five hours before Carl called to say he thought the facility had forgotten about him and he wanted a ride home.
By that point, all ride services were closed, so Steve went to Riverbend and picked up his dad.
"The nurse that brought him out did not warn us, did not say he may have this virus, no warning whatsoever," Steve said. "He did not have a mask on. I never dreamed that he was infected with the virus. You think, at a minimum, they would've tested him."
Two days after Carl returned home from Riverbend, he died.
The first time Steve said he heard anything from Riverbend was after Carl died and after a published report about the incident.
Steve said Riverbend contacted him by conference call, a call that included Riverbend Director Cory Schulte and others from the facility.
During that call, Steve said they all chimed in, claiming Carl didn't have any symptoms when he was sent home.
But Steve insists Carl wouldn't stop coughing the whole ride home from Riverbend and during the two remaining days of his life.
"To me, it was absurd what they were saying, knowing what he was like when I picked him up," Steve said. "It reminded me of a smoker's cough, where you just cough and cough and cough. But Dad wasn't a smoker, so I knew that things weren't right. Them claiming he did not have any symptoms to me is ridiculous, but even that is beside the point. They still should have tested him before they released him."
Additionally, Steve said he suspects the impetus for the conference call was solely to protect Riverbend's interests.
"That's what it seemed like why they made the call," Steve said. "It wasn't like to call and apologize, because they had made a gross error in sending my father home when he was infected with the virus. They never admit anything that they did wrong."
Schulte declined to address the specifics of Steve's accusations in an email response to questions from the 41 Action News Investigators.
"We do not think the media is the most appropriate forum for addressing issues that may exist between the family of a resident and the facility," Schulte wrote in an email to 41 Action News.
After Carl died, instead of going to the funeral home where prior arrangements had been made, his body was taken to a morgue, where the Wyandotte County Health Department tested him posthumously for COVID-19.
"They (the health department) never contacted us either," Steve said. "We didn't find out that dad was positive until that following Thursday when my daughter called the health department wanting to know what happened to her grandpa."
Carl was buried without a wake or funeral.
Once Steve found out his dad was positive for the virus, his wife, Janis, called the family doctor, who prescribed COVID-19 tests for both Janis and Steve.
Both Steve and Janis are 68 years old and diabetic.
The couple found out Saturday they also tested positive.
Janis was having trouble breathing by Sunday morning, so Steve took her to the hospital.
"She had no appetite and then when she did try to eat anything, or even take her diabetes medication or drink water, she couldn't keep it down." Steve said.
Janis has been to the hospital twice, but she was at home and improving a bit by Wednesday, according to Steve.
Steve said he's had a low-grade fever and low energy, but otherwise has been OK.
He believes the whole situation was avoidable if Riverbend had done the right thing.
"The whole purpose of him being in the nursing home was for therapy to get his strength back up, so he could function in the house," Steve said. "Sos there's no way they should've released him. Besides having the virus, he wasn't strong enough, so none of this made any sense to me."
Steve said if he and Janis recover as quickly as possible, he might be able to visit his children and grandchildren by May 1.
Meanwhile, the couple can't have contact with anyone.
"If you have friends or relatives in the nursing homes, make sure they get tested before you see them, take them home, anything," Steve said.
Schulte said the facility is reporting COVID-19 cases from Riverbend to the Wyandotte County Health Department.
There have been 92 positive cases, including 15 deaths, attributed to Riverbend. That also includes 24 staff members who've tested positive and nine residents who remain hospitalzied.
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