Too old to count? Seniors miffed at census form denials
Does Statistics Canada think residents of retirement homes are too old, too infirm or just too dim to fill out a census form?
No. But to some, it feels that way. Lois Schmidt is 85 and lives in a retirement community, Oakpark, near the corner of Smyth Road and Alta Vista Drive, a five-storey building with about 125 residents. A widow since 2010, she’s quite happy there and says she’s recovered well from heart surgery a year ago. Of backbone, she does not lack. “I’m back in action.” She is a civic-minded sort, proud to have voted in every election since she became eligible.
When she heard the radio commercials for the 2016 census, she was keen to fill it out. Though residents have individual mailboxes, she received no pre-census advisory, then no census form. Was there not a potential penalty for failure to complete by the May 10 deadline?
When Schmidt inquired, she was told that staff at Oakpark had already sent the required information to Stats Canada. Because Oakpark offers a “continuum” of care — from independent living to a secure floor for those battling memory loss — she began to wonder if residents were being treated differently.
“We pay our taxes, we vote, and I feel that they’re telling us we’re too old and enfeebled, and not able to carry out this duty,” she said this week.
“We were never notified it was going to be done this way in the first place,” she added. “They are ignoring us as citizens.”
Well, it turns out it is absolutely true that Statistics Canada does use a form of shortcut to collect information from places like retirement homes. Here is a written response attributable to Marc Hamel, the director general of the census.
“To reduce the burden on Canadians, Statistics Canada works with staff in collective establishments such as hospitals, retirement homes, shelters, etc. to collect as much information as possible from the administrative records of institutions and residences. The information in these records is accurate and reliable,” said the statement sent to the Citizen.
And, in fact, staff at Oakpark report that no census forms were ever sent to them. General manager Corinne Rossiter said Tuesday that StatsCan contacted the facility by telephone and asked if it could provide basic information on each resident: name, unit number, birth date and gender. (This is less information, even, than sought on the “short form” census.)
Within a couple of days, it complied.
“There were no forms filled out.”
Although she has no quarrel with Oakpark, Schmidt is not happy the census task was denied them, without their knowledge. “And I’m not the only one here.”
Indeed, there was a letter to the Citizen published Saturday in which a resident of the Court at Barrhaven complained that occupants received no census advisories or forms until staff pestered StatsCan to send them along to the retirement community.
Well, on one level, this is a small issue. Does it really matter, in the end, who does the counting, as long as it’s done accurately? But, on other levels, it matters a good deal to people: It is the right to be counted correctly, to fulfil a civic duty, to participate in a national effort and, especially, to not be disenfranchised because of where you live or how old you are.
Sarah Bercier is the executivedirector of the Council on Aging of Ottawa. She has not heard any complaints from seniors who feel left out of the census process, but understands how it would irk them. “This is an issue of independence and feeling valued and feeling like you’re capable of doing things. Seniors’ independence is a huge thing.”
This loss of independence is one of the toughest things seniors deal with as they age, she said, and might include moving from the family home and into care, the end of driving, the lack of control over finances.
“You don’t mind getting old, but you don’t want to lose abilities,” she added. “It’s all about perception and how you feel about yourself.”
As of Monday, about 15.5 million dwellings in Canada had received questionnaires or letters about the census. Some 11.1 million have already been returned.
“Be part of this new portrait of Canada and complete your census questionnaire,” says an online message from Chief Statistician Wayne R. Smith.
How some would love to, Mr. Smith, if given half a chance.