(October 26, 2016)<\/p>\n
By: Heather Rivers, Woodstock Sentinel\u00ad Review<\/p>\n
The long\u00ad term care system in Ontario is unable to provide adequate care and oversight to prevent potential horror stories from happening, according to Natalie Mehra, executive director of the Ontario Health Coalition. Mehra said long \u00adterm care facilities in Ontario are so underfunded it is impossible to provide \u201cnecessary care and oversights\u201d to residents. Mehra spoke out in reaction to news of the alleged eight murders of long \u00adterm care residents in London and Woodstock over the span of seven years by former registered nurse Elizabeth Wettlaufer.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe all feel for the families\u037e this must be awful for them to go,\u201d she said. Mehra explains there is \u201ca lot of suffering in long \u00adterm care facilities.\u201d \u201cEverywhere I go in Ontario, they will tell you they are short staffed. Even with full staffing, there isn\u2019t enough care,\u201d she said. \u201cFamilies with money hire an extra caregiver.\u201d<\/p>\n
Legislation, she said, requires every staff member to report abuse of neglect, incorporating a zero \u00adtolerance policy. \u201cIt remains to be known how (these alleged murders) happened,\u201d she said. \u201cLack of staffing is a systemic problem. It\u2019s impossible to provide care and adequate oversight.\u201d There are also strict protocols in place for how pharmaceuticals are handled, as well as who can prescribe and administer drugs. Meds are supposed to be meticulously documented by dosage and frequency. \u201cThere is a whole safety regime around administering drugs,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s not clear where she got the dosage and how it was administered without anybody noticing.\u201d<\/p>\n
One of the problems, in Ontario she said, is the lack of chronic care beds in hospitals. \u201cIn Ontario, our government has cut more hospital beds than anyone in Canada. What used to be chronic care are now long\u00ad term care,\u201d she said. \u201cLong \u00adterm care facilities have heavier cases and higher acuity. Yet staffing levels have never kept place.\u201d<\/p>\n