Senior managers testify at St Basil's aged-care COVID inquest as families seek answers

Former chair Konstantin Kontis and former director of nursing Vicky Kos were compelled to give evidence at the coroner’s inquest into the COVID-19 deaths at St Basil’s aged-care home.

During the coroner’s hearing, Konstantin Kontis and Vicky Kos, the most senior managers at St Basil’s aged-care home during the 2020 COVID-19 outbreak, were forced to testify after several failed attempts to avoid giving evidence. Kontis explained that the board had not signed off on the facility’s pandemic policy and that he believed he could approve it alone, though he later acknowledged no authority permitted such action without board input.

Kos asserted that a cohort plan for separating infected residents was stored in a yellow folder, yet a subsequent search failed to locate the document. The court heard that the policy lacked detailed guidance on close contacts and was not updated as government directives evolved, relying instead on printed updates for staff. Missing minutes from an April 2020 board meeting and the inability to produce a clear segregation plan were noted, prompting delays for further document searches. Both managers frequently responded “I don’t remember” to questions, and their testimony was given under a certificate that protects it from use in criminal or civil proceedings.