The family of Alice Grove, 75, (pictured), is urging the province to release locations of patients diagnosed with COVID-19 to prevent further transmission. (submitted photo/ Eleanor Widdowson)

By Josh Ryan

Life lost

Sister of woman who died from COVID-19 urges public to follow precautions and stay home

Mar 31, 2020 | 5:17 PM

Battlefords resident Eleanor Widdowson is urging her community and the rest of Saskatchewan to “follow the rules” after her sister died from COVID-19 the day before receiving her test result.

Widdowson’s sister Alice Grove wasn’t feeling well last week and collapsed last Friday afternoon at her farm just outside of North Battleford. It took merely hours for the 75-year-old’s condition to progressively worsen. After collapsing on Friday, Grove was intubated and by the next morning Widdowson was told her sister would not recover.

“I took her off oxygen and she passed away a little after 8 a.m. on Saturday,” she said.

Widdowson said her sister was a fun-loving person, believed in God and was a gifted musician. She leaves behind many who loved her.

“She loved her great nieces and nephews. They all miss her,” Widdowson said.

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Grove’s positive test for coronavirus came back the day after her death. Widdowson said her family warned Grove repeatedly to stay home amidst the growing concern of the virus’s spread, but she continued to venture to town. Widdowson said if the province informed the public which cities or towns the virus was present in, it may have stopped her.

“She would have asked me to go get her groceries and take them out to the farm,” Widdowson said. “She was 75 years old, living on the farm by herself.”

Saskatchewan’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Saqib Shahab has said listing specific communities could identify a patient, which would lead to patient privacy concerns. Widdowson believes sharing that information is necessary to convince residents of the pandemic’s severity.

“If old people aren’t going to be told that it’s in their city, are they going to think it’s there? No, they’re not,” Widdowson said.

On behalf of the city, North Battleford Mayor Ryan Bater said “our hearts are broken” after learning of Grove’s passing. He reiterated the importance of following provincial directives.

“People need to be physically distancing themselves from each other,” he said. “Leave your home only if you need to for necessities.”

He hopes this news will cause everyone to conduct themselves accordingly to prevent further transmission of COVID-19.

“If we all assume that we have it and that every person we interact with is someone we care about, then our behavior will be appropriate,” Bater said. “That’s what we need to be focusing on.”

Widdowson said she hopes people don’t hold it against her for sharing her sister’s story. As an employee of the Saskatchewan Health Authority she doesn’t know if she will still have a job after this but she believes it was the right thing to do.

“This wasn’t under any confidentiality agreement. I was there; I’m the one that took her off oxygen,” she said. “I’m trying to cause people to be sensible and just listen for once. Don’t be selfish.

“She would want people to know. She wouldn’t want anybody else dying from this crap.”

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josh.ryan@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @JoshRyanSports