MADRID (Reuters) – An 85-year-old woman who is believed to have died by her family from the coronavirus has surprised her family members by returning to her care home nine days after being notified that she was buried. newspaper reported Sunday.
After a confusion over names, the family of Rogelia Blanco was notified that the pensioner died of COVID-19 on January 13 and her funeral was the next day, the newspaper La Voz de Galicia said. Due to coronavirus protocols they could not attend.
So when she arrived at the care home in Xove, northern Spain, fit and well, where her husband, Ramón Blanco, also lived, he was overwhelmed, the newspaper said.
‘I could not believe it. I cried, after the death of my wife, “he was quoted as saying, adding that it was the woman who shared a room with Blanco.
The newspaper quoted the San Rosendo Foundation, which runs the nursing home, as saying that the error occurred when Blanco and other residents who tested positive for COVID-19 were transferred to another nursing home on December 29 for specialized treatment.
“Among the elderly who were transferred were two women who received the same room,” the foundation said, according to La Voz de Galicia. They were transferred to the Os Gozos residence in Pereiro de Aguiar, 223 km (139 miles) from Xove.
” An identification error during the transfer of Xove to Pereiro de Aguiar resulted in the death of one of them being certified on January 13, although the identity was incorrectly assigned. ‘
The foundation expressed its regret over the ‘unfortunate incident’, the newspaper said, citing the statement, adding: “This is a one-off event, among the more than 100 transfers made to Os Gozos since December last year. is.’
A court has been notified to reverse the mistake over Blanco’s death, the statement said. The foundation did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters for comment.
Reporting by Graham Keeley; edited by Philippa Fletcher