B.C. Liberals promise to boost seniors health care
Opposition derides four-year, $500M commitment as pre-election ploy
B.C.’s health minister promised more money for seniors care Thursday, in a plan that was embraced by care advocates but chastised by critics as a cynical election ploy.
Terry Lake announced $500 million over four years for seniors care, which he said will boost the number of direct care hours for seniors in residential care homes, as well as the staff and services available through home-care programs.
But the funding breaks down to only $45 million this coming year, on the eve of a May 9 provincial election. It rises to $180 million by 2021, a full election cycle later.
Lake said the money will be used to eventually hire 1,500 extra staff, such as health-care assistants, nurses and occupational therapists.
“Health authorities will be mandated to have an average of 3.36 hours of direct per resident care (per day) at the end of the four year period,” he said. “We can’t do that overnight, because we need the bodies to be able to do that.”
Lake said the health-care system is continuing to transition to fund more programs that help seniors get dressed, fed and bathed in their homes, for as long as possible. The goal, he said, is to keep seniors out of hospitals and emergency rooms, because emergency care is more expensive and has less positive outcomes than nursing care at a person’s home or in a seniors’ facility.
The promise was mocked by NDP critic Judy Darcy, who noted the government already has a guideline for the same 3.36 daily care hours, and yet 91 per cent of care homes can’t meet the guideline and seniors are left neglected.
“I find it unconscionable that this government has neglected seniors for 16 years and then 61 days before an election they decide they need to do something about it,” said Darcy. “We have seniors living in their homes who had to wait 51 days for a bath. We have seniors in residential care who can’t get toileted in time.”
Vancouver Coastal Health has an average of 2.98 care hours per day per senior, though it was unable to say Thursday how much money or staff would be required to get it up to the new provincially mandated level. Fraser Health has an average of 3.01 direct care hours per day.
Seniors Advocate Isobel Mackenzie said the extra money recognizes many of the family care givers who are caring for their elderly parents or relatives “are stretched to the breaking point” and need more help.
The net effect of the funding will be more than 7,000 additional hours of daily care for the 27,000 seniors currently in residential facilities, she said.
“It is going to make a significant difference,” said Mackenzie. “It could mean that I can go to the bathroom within 15 minutes of asking instead of 45. It might be I can ask for a bath on Tuesday and get one even though I just had one on Saturday.
“It’s going to have a profound impact,” she added.
There was no mention of seniors health care in last month’s provincial budget. Lake said Thursday that some of the funding could only be announced after a new health-care accord with Ottawa. Darcy said that’s untrue, and the province could have found the money out of previous budget surpluses.
Daniel Fontaine, CEO of the B.C. Care Providers Association, which represents the private-sector care home companies, called the funding “probably the most significant investment in over a decade in terms of seniors in this province.”
This government has neglected seniors for 16 years and then 61 days before an election they decide they need to do something about it.