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'We support the findings ... but it's disappointing that the government has not embraced all the recommendations and has acted to implement less than half of them.' - Darryl Walker.
Vancouver (23 Dec. 2009) - The B.C. Government and Service Employees' Union (BCGEU/NUPGE) has welcomed the first of two reports by Kim Carter, the province's ombudsperson, on seniors in residential care.
The report contains 10 recommendations for improving the rights of seniors.
The key proposals include creating a seniors' bill of rights, developing a single provincial website for the public reporting of information on residential care facilities and expanding and entrenching the role of resident and family councils.
"We support the findings and recommendations that the ombudsperson made in her report," says Darryl Walker, BCGEU president. "But it's disappointing that the government has not embraced all the recommendations and has acted to implement less than half of them."
Walker adds that the report serves to reinforce the damage being done to seniors' care in the province as the government continues to slash funding for a variety of programs.
"In typical fashion, this government is saying one thing and doing - or not doing - another. While they claim to support the ombudsperson's recommendations, they're cutting seniors' programs and reducing the quality of care," says Walker.
BCGEU made a presentation and provided a written submission to the ombudsperson and her staff in November 2008.
"We've been hearing complaints about standards of care in facilities from our members for years," says Brenda Brown, chair of the health services component. "We're pleased that the information provided by our members is reflected in this report to a certain extent but we also hoped the recommendations would go farther."
Brown says BCGEU members, as front-line workers in residential care facilities, are well-positioned to talk about the need to improve conditions for seniors.
"We wanted to highlight the damage being caused by under-funding in residential care," adds Brown. "We hope now that the second report will make stronger recommendations to improve the funding models and levels of direct care for residents."
NUPGE
The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE