(May 20, 2020)<\/p>\n
By: Matt Dionne, inbrampton<\/p>\n
The Ontario Health Coalition (OHC) is calling for an independent inquiry into the operation of the province\u2019s long-term care\u00a0facilities.<\/p>\n
After Premier Doug Ford announced he would support such an investigation, the\u00a0OHC\u00a0is calling for the commission into long-term care to be under the public inquiries act and fully independent of for-profit long-term care\u00a0operators.<\/p>\n
\u201cAny long-term care commission must have unimpeachable credibility and operate in the public interest,\u201d Natalie Mehra, executive director of the\u00a0OHC, said in a news\u00a0release.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat means it cannot be led or controlled by any partisan (political party) interests or by long-term care owners and operators. It must be transparent and open, not by invitation only. Testimony and research must be on the record and fully available publicly as with formal commissions and inquiries in the past, and the commission must report as quickly as possible,\u201d she\u00a0continued.<\/p>\n
Additionally, the\u00a0OHC\u00a0is calling for an investigation into the Province\u2019s response to the pandemic, when it would be viable to do\u00a0so.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are a number of issues that warrant investigation in Ontario\u2019s response to\u00a0COVID-19 overall, not just for long-term care, and these need to happen under the full powers of a public commission,\u201d Ross Sutherland, chairperson of the\u00a0OHC, said in the same\u00a0release.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese include the response to health and safety complaints and work refusals, the\u00a0PPE\u00a0stockpile, approaches to testing\/contract tracing\/quarantine and laboratories, capacity and processes in Public Health, adequate capacity in public hospitals, infection control orders, accountability and approaches to the shut down. These things cannot be adequately addressed in an inquiry looking at long-term care in isolation,\u201d he\u00a0continued.<\/p>\n
Further, the\u00a0OHC\u00a0believes the Province needs to implement a concise and systematic plan that will address several issues including improving\u00a0PPE\u00a0supply and infection control, stabilizing the workforce, and coordinating a plan to curb the growing number of infections spreading throughout health care\u00a0facilities.<\/p>\n