Health watchdog uses throne speech to call for immediate improvements in long-term care
A provincial health care watchdog used the occasion of Monday’s Ontario government throne speech to point out what it says are deficiencies in the long-term care system.
The Ontario Health Coalition held demonstrations outside MPP offices across the province Monday, including PC MPP Jeff Yurek’s constituency office in St. Thomas.
Among the protestors was Susan Godin, who says her sister passed in 2019 while residing at a London long- term care home. Godin says there were times her sister went as long as 10 days without being bathed, due to low staffing levels.
“There was only one PSW (personal support worker) available, and they needed two to bathe her, so she actually went 10 days without a bath,” says Godin. “We were really quite worried about her hygiene, and her happiness, and everything.”
The group is calling for an end to private, for-profit long-term care, and immediate improvements in staffing and inspection levels at long-term care homes.
“Enforcement rules that are on the books but are not being enforced,” said Peter Bergmanis, from the London branch of the Ontario Health Coalition. “We haven’t seen one operator held to account -- and they need to be held to account.”
Last Friday, the province announced mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations for long-term care staff, effective November 15.
“It’s not making it attractive for those who are still in the industry,” says Bergmanis. He believes the measure will result in even more trained staff leaving-long term care. “Honestly, 90 per cent or more have already been vaccinated. But if they’re left to have to work unbearable hours with crushing workloads -- many who are able to retire are retiring.”
The protest comes as Southwestern Public Health works to contain a COVID-19 outbreak at Elgin Manor, a public non-profit long-term care home just west of St. Thomas.
It’s the first outbreak at a long-term care home in the entire Southwestern catchment area of St. Thomas, Elgin and Oxford since May of this year.
The health unit said as of Monday three people at Elgin Manor had tested positive for COVID-19, including two residents and one staff.
Yurek did not respond to our request for comment on the protest.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6947764.1719881470!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
Did WestJet cancel your flight? Here's what experts say you should do
WestJet cancelled more than 800 flights between June 27 and July 2, affecting tens of thousands of passengers. Here are the kinds of compensation experts say passengers affected by the cancellations may be entitled to, and how to go about advocating for it.
What a family lawyer says you should know before getting married
Barry Nussbaum, a Toronto-based family lawyer who has counselled countless couples, offers advice about the details you don't want to overlook before getting married.
Hurricane Beryl rips through open waters after devastating the southeast Caribbean
Hurricane Beryl roared through open waters on Tuesday as a monstrous Category 5 storm on a path that would take it near Jamaica and the Cayman Islands after earlier making landfall in the southeast Caribbean, killing at least two people.
Five years after historic tobacco ruling, 'nothing has changed'
Five years after a historic ruling against three major tobacco companies, no one has seen even a fraction of the money they're entitled to – and recent court filings suggest hundreds have died in the interim.
This 12-year-old memorized the periodic table at age two. He's heading to NYU after finishing high school in just two years
Recent high school graduate Suborno Isaac Bari, 12, plans to start studying math and physics at New York University in the fall, but he’s already got his ambitious sights set on beginning a doctoral program.
Scientists wary of bird flu pandemic 'unfolding in slow motion'
Scientists tracking the spread of bird flu are increasingly concerned that gaps in surveillance may keep them several steps behind a new pandemic, according to Reuters interviews with more than a dozen leading disease experts.
Flash flooding in B.C. Interior affects at least 20 homes, emergency officials say
At least 20 homes have been affected by flash flooding in the British Columbia Interior following heavy rains that forced the overnight closure of the Trans-Canada Highway near Kamloops.
NEW Dutch researcher looking to link up with families of Indigenous heroes
A researcher from the Netherlands is looking to identify the families of a couple of dozen Indigenous heroes who gave their lives while fighting for freedom in World War II. It’s all part of a larger remembrance project she’s working on.
Fire at gas metering station sparks grass fire that shut Alberta highway
Yellowhead County in west-central Alberta says a fire that prompted the closure of a major highway west of Edmonton involved a gas metering station.