Seniors' Care: Health Coalition urges province to act on key recommendations

Letter to Premier commends BC government for accepting four of the Ombudsperson’s recommendations on seniors' care, urges follow through on remaining six

TMTV/BCTV Kootenays Feb 23, 2010 - The BC Health Coalition is calling on the BC government to implement each of the ten recommendations outlined in the provincial Ombudsperson’s report on senior’s care in residential care facilities in British Columbia.

In a letter to Premier Gordon Campbell, the Coalition commends the government’s commitment to implement four key recommendations made in the December 2009 report. However, it voices concerns that the government will be unable to meet the resident and family needs identified in the report without the full and timely implementation of the report’s six other recommendations.

"The public response to this investigation has been unparalleled in the history of the Ombudsperson’s office," the letter states. "However, despite this response and the depth and scope of the investigation itself, the Ministry of Health Services and Ministry of Healthy Living and Sport have only agreed to implement four of the ten recommendations."

"This report is the first part of the Ombudsperson’s ongoing investigation in response to a growing number of complaints and increasing public concern about seniors’ care in the province’s residential care facilities," says Rachel Tutte, Co-Chair of the BC Health Coalition. “That is why it is so important that our government respect the legitimacy and integrity of these recommendations by moving immediately to implement each of them.”

The Ombudsperson's report makes specific policy recommendations to improve the quality of life for residents in care facilities including setting out a clear commitment to care and residents’ rights and providing support for family councils.