Family concerned about Sask. program moving patients from hospitals to private care homes

Larry Adam said he is concerned about a lack of communication regarding a new program under which residents are being moved from hospitals to his parents' care home in Warman, Sask.

Adam, a retired medical professional who lives in Abbotsford, B.C., said he and his sister were not told that their parents' private personal care home, Diamond House, would be opened to new residents to free up provincial hospital beds.

"We're trying to understand where these new residents are coming from," he said.

Adam said he and his sister, who is based in Saskatchewan, only became aware of the situation once an allegation of a violent incident at the home began circulating on social media.

He said he and his family were left in the dark as to "why the environment within the facility has changed in a negative way and is deemed to be unsafe."

CBC has contacted the home, family members of its residents, police, government and the provincial health authority, but has been unable to verify that any violent incident happened at Diamond House. RCMP say they have received no reports of any such incident.

Saskatchewan's Ministry of Health, which regulates private personal care homes in the province, confirmed it is investigating an "allegation" at Diamond House, but did not give any details, citing privacy considerations.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) told CBC News it has signed a five-year agreement with three private personal care homes for convalescent care spaces, also known as temporary or transitional care spaces. Diamond House is one of the homes. The SHA would not identify the others.

John Ash, vice president of Integrated Saskatoon Health for SHA, said the agreement is part of the city's Capacity Pressure Action Plan, which is meant to relieve overcrowding in hospitals.

The idea is to move people who no longer need acute care to homes where they would still be given some degree of support.

"This is about enhancing the capacity to make sure that patients get the right care in the right care environment to meet their needs," Ash said.

"Examples of individuals that would benefit from these beds would be individuals just requiring daily assistance — support with eating, getting dressed, walking, simple wound care, those waiting for surgery, IV treatment — where they could be non-weight bearing."

The SHA would not give more specifics about the demographics of patients being moved from hospitals into private care homes.

Ash said a total of 75 convalescent care beds have been added to expand community capacity in Saskatoon through this plan, with 68 of these beds occupied.