A city-operated long-term care (LTC) facility in Thunder Bay, Ont., and a staff member face criminal charges following the death a year ago of an 86-year-old resident.

An elder abuse investigation began Feb. 11, 2025, after the Crimes Against Seniors’ Division received a report about an incident 12 days earlier, according to the Thunder Bay Police Service (TBPS).

The resident of Pioneer Ridge Long Term Care Home sustained injuries while in the care of a staff member, the TBPS said in a news release Monday.

“Additional unrelated and unreported injuries were later confirmed. No documentation of the injuries was located by officers.”

Police didn’t release the name of the resident, who died March 6, 2025.

According to police, the facility “failed to take the reasonable steps to prevent any serious bodily harm or death to residents, and attempted to delay and obstruct a police investigation.”

The staff member, a 52-year-old woman, was charged with criminal negligence causing death; the care home faces the same count and has also been charged with obstructing justice.

None of the allegations have been proven in court.

Ministry inspection began before resident’s death

CBC News reached out to the City of Thunder Bay for comment. In an emailed response Tuesday, spokesperson Michelle Williams said the city isn’t able to comment as the matter is before the courts.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Long-Term Care provided a statement late Tuesday afternoon.

“We respond immediately to any reported information where there is serious harm, or risk of serious harm, to a resident or residents, by making inquiries and conducting onsite inspections,” the statement said.

“The ministry was informed of this incident and subsequently completed an inspection. Inspection findings are available on the ministry’s public reporting website.”

Ministry workers conduct inspections at every long-term care home in the province at least once a year to determine compliance with the Fixing Long Term Care Act, 2021, “which includes mandatory reporting requirements if it is suspected that abuse, neglect, improper treatment or unlawful conduct has occurred, or may occur.”

Pioneer Ridge is a 150-bed facility that receives financial support from the ministry. There’s a wait list of 620 people aiming to become residents, according to the ministry’s website. 

The ministry launched an on-site inspection at Pioneer Ridge the day before the 86-year-old died. It was conducted from March 5-7 and March 11-14, 2025.

The long-term care home received written notifications for being non-compliant with regulations related to falls prevention and management, the skin and wound care program, and critical incident reporting, according to the report issued March 20, 2025.

It received a compliance order for failing “to ensure that staff used safe transferring and positioning devices or techniques when assisting a resident during an activity of daily living.”

“A resident sustained injuries as a result of improper positioning by a staff member,” the report said.

The home also received a compliance order related to its infection prevention and control program during this time.

Three other ministry inspections were conducted at Pioneer Ridge through 2025, in June, October and December.

In June, it received a written notification about non-compliance in the area of integration of care.

In October, it received two written notifications about non-compliance with critical incident reporting — as well as a compliance order related to transferring and positioning techniques. The city was ordered to pay a $1,100 fine.

No findings of non-compliance were made in the December inspection.

Another compliance order issued last month

The latest inspection at Pioneer Ridge — considered a proactive compliance inspection — found several areas of non-compliance of the act. It was conducted from Jan. 28-30 and Feb. 2-3. The findings were issued in a public report Feb. 4.

Pioneer Ridge received written notifications about non-compliance in the following areas: 

• Personal Assistance Services Devices (PASD) that limit or inhibit movement.
• Bed rails.
• General requirements.
• Skin and wound care.
• Evaluation.

A compliance order was also issued because “a resident who was exhibiting altered skin integrity did not receive treatment and interventions as ordered,” the report says.

Pioneer Ridge has been ordered to do the following by March 23:

1. Conduct a documented multi-disciplinary review of two residents’ wound care treatments and update the residents’ plans of care as indicated, based on the outcome of this review.
2. Conduct audits of the wound care provided to the two identified residents, twice weekly, for four weeks to ensure such care was done as ordered.
3. Maintain a documented record of the audits, any gaps identified and corrective action taken in response to the audits.

The TBPS is asking anyone with information related to its investigation of the facility — focusing on anything that may have occurred between March 19, 2024, and March 6, 2025 — to contact Det. Const. Kevin Middleton at 807-317-0145.

People can also provide tips anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at www.p3tips.com.

The police service wouldn’t provide any other information as the investigation continues.