Ontario Government Dereliction of Duty Continues in
Long-Term Care Homes
Communities Across Ontario Participate in Long-Term Care Day of Action
 
Twenty-five communities across Ontario held
events on October 8,
the Day of Action called by the Ontario Health
Coalition (OHC) for
improvements in long-term care (LTC) in Ontario.
People set up pickets
in front of the offices of MPPs, held rallies
and car cavalcades, including one at the provincial
Legislature in Toronto.
 Despite
eight months' experience since the onset of the
pandemic and the dismal
failure of Ontario to protect seniors and their
caregivers throughout
the first wave, the situation in the LTC system in
Ontario remains dire.
The demands raised across Ontario on October 8
included calls for
immediate government action to address staffing
shortages,
to enforce the minimum standards of care
recommended by the Registered
Nurses' Association of Ontario and others, for
adequate protection for
frontline health care workers, and to put an
end to for-profit
delivery of long-term care services.
Speaking at a press conference at Queen's Park
in Toronto, OHC
Executive Director Natalie Mehra said there are
currently large
COVID-19 outbreaks in Toronto and Ottawa and
increasing outbreaks in
regions across Southern Ontario. "The Coalition
has been tracking
outbreaks since early March and has now counted
51 currently active
outbreaks
in long-term care homes and 40 outbreaks in
retirement homes across
Ontario," she said.
Jane Meadus, a lawyer with the Advocacy Centre
for the Elderly,
echoed the concerns about inadequate care in her statement. She
said: "Residents' conditions have deteriorated
as a result of
isolation, loneliness, and inadequate care.
Family caregivers cannot be
shut out again and staffing and care levels must
be addressed as a
priority."
 Dr.
Amit Arya, a palliative care physician in
long-term care homes and an
OHC board member said: "The second wave is
already impacting long-term
care facilities. Every day of inaction counts.
Ontario needs to change
the way we are addressing this crisis situation
now." Dr. Arya went on
to call for a legislated
staffing standard that would result in four
hours of hands-on care, and
noted it needs to be enforceable. He said that the
government needs to put
its full weight and resources behind reaching
that target.
"We need to
ensure that all the staff have access to
full-time work, a living wage,
sick leave and are only in one long-term care
home. Residents need
their
family caregivers and that needs to be protected
in law. Medical teams
need to be ready to stand by and provide support
and intervention early
when there are outbreaks," he stated. Below Workers' Forum reports on a
recent briefing in which
the OHC sheds light on current outbreaks in LTC
facilities and staffing
shortages and government attempts
to disinform the public
with its numerous recent funding announcements.
This article was published in
Number 69 - October 13, 2020
Article Link:
Ontario Government Dereliction of Duty Continues in : Communities Across Ontario Participate in Long-Term Care Day of Action
Website: www.cpcml.ca
Email: editor@cpcml.ca
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