Family concerned that others will be at risk
In a statement, Ottawa police did not say why charges weren’t laid, but said elder-abuse charges can fall under property crimes, such as theft and fraud, or personal crimes, such as assault, threats and failing to provide the necessities of life.
This week, Pepin and Nassrallah, who is representing her through his law firm DNG Nassrallah Law Offices, said they were disappointed and concerned by the failure to lay charges, particularly against the personal support worker seen repeatedly telling her mother she should die. Three other workers, at various times, are seen in the videos watching or laughing. None of the workers reported the incidents, as required under long-term care legislation.
The city, which runs Peter D. Clark and three other long-term care homes, said in a statement that “the employees in question are no longer employed with the city.”
But Pepin and Nassrallah note losing their jobs would not prevent them from working at another long-term care home or elsewhere caring for vulnerable people, especially at a time when personal support workers are hard to find.
“I am not out for private retribution,” Pepin said. “The bigger concern is that she (the worker seen telling her mother to die) will end up with a job and then other people are at risk.”
Without a criminal record, Nassrallah said, there are countless other places where the workers can apply and would likely get hired — and residents and their families would be in the dark.
The province and other groups have been working on setting up a registry for personal support workers for years. It was to have been phased in early this year, but does not yet appear to be in place. Currently, background checks prevent people with a criminal record from being hired, but there are no other routine means to find out an employee’s past history and, given a shortage of personal support workers, a reduced incentive for employers to look.
Nassrallah and Pepin said the province’s inspection and subsequent report into the incidents are also disappointing and fail to meet the need for transparency about what goes on inside long-term care homes.
The inspectors, according to Pepin, came to the conclusion that they could not hear swear words in the video clips they reviewed.
The Citizen has reviewed the clips and the word “bitch” is heard several times. At least once, it appears to be directed toward the camera, which Pepin believes was aimed at her, with the words “you watch, bitch.” In another instance, a caregiver says to Pepin’s mother, “die, die ya bitch, you need to die now.”
Pepin’s mother is also asked: “Why is it taking you so long to die? We feeding you too much?” In another incident, the personal support worker turns to Pepin’s mother and says in a high-pitched chant, “die now, die, die die.” The other support worker with her asks, “That’s your plea?” and the first PSW answers, “that is my plea.”
Pepin has already seen the province’s report on the incidents documented in the videos. She said it does not include the word “bitch” and paraphrases some of the other comments made.
“The public is entitled to know the reality,” Pepin said.
“They deserve to hear the truth, not someone’s watered-down version of what happened. There is a huge difference between the reality and what is published.”
A public report will eventually be posted on the ministry’s website. Ministry reports have long been a point of contention with critics, who complain about a lack of transparency as it is often impossible to divine details of events from the reports written about them.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care said inspection reports are edited to remove as much personal and health information as possible.
“We make every effort to strike a balance between the government’s commitment to information transparency and the need to respect privacy and appropriately reflect the serious nature of the issue,” said spokesman David Jensen.
Reports, which are filed after ministry inspections, primarily outline where a licensee failed to meet requirements of the Long-Term Care Homes Act or related regulations. Reports may also contain details about interviews with residents, family members and staff of the home, Jensen said.
Nassrallah’s grandfather was assaulted by a support worker at the city-run Garry J. Armstrong longterm care home last summer. The incident was captured on video, leading to an assault conviction and a series of provincial and city investigations.
He said there are parallels between the two cases.
His grandfather’s case, he said, provided a “blueprint” for a care worker to “physically assault a vulnerable elderly individual” and get away with only a “slap on the wrist.” (His grandfather’s attacker, Jie Xiao, received 90 days in jail, with a sentence that allowed him to serve two days a week between work shifts.)
Pepin’s mother’s case, he said, “provides a blueprint for an assailant to repeatedly verbally assault a vulnerable elderly individual yet receive no response whatsoever from our criminal justice system.
“That begs the question: When will the criminal justice system finally protect our most vulnerable loved ones? I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: The system is broken on every level and the public ought to be outraged.”
Pepin said she is haunted by the video images and watches new video from her mother’s room every day, although the perpetrators no longer work at the home. The images, she said, have left scars.
“Sometimes I break down crying unexpectedly. Oftentimes I find myself shaking when I am going through my regular day. I am not watching the videos, but they are looping in my brain and sometimes nothing can turn them off. If I feel this way, then what is it doing to my mother? She is unable to speak. She can’t let it out to anybody else.”
The public is entitled to know the reality. They deserve to hear the truth, not someone’s watered-down version ...