Long-term care report due 'soon,' health minister says
CBC
A government review of long-term care on Prince Edward Island should be done "very soon," Health Minister Mark McLane said in the legislature Wednesday in response to questions from the Green Party.
Green Leader Peter Bevan-Baker cited a CBC P.E.I. report from February that showed multiple private long-term care homes on the Island are failing to meet standards. Four out of 10 private care homes in P.E.I. are on provisional licences as a result.
Bevan-Baker suggested the provincial government wasn't doing enough to hold private LTC facilities accountable.
"Islanders expect and deserve better care for their elders, and it's government's job to make sure they get it."
Some families called for a public inquiry into long-term care. But the government said it first wanted to conduct a review.
Bevan-Baker said Islanders have been waiting a long-time for that, and asked McLane when would it be completed.
McLane said the government is still working on analyzing data from "surveys, stakeholder interviews, submissions and public consultations."
"That's an important part of this process of how we move forward with our long-term care industry on Prince Edward Island," he said.
McLane said operators were having challenges with staffing, but "nobody wants to close beds."
But Bevan-Baker questioned whether the Progressive Conservatives believe private profit "trumps our seniors' right to care and safety."
"We've been waiting a very long-time for this long-term care report. It was promised last fall and then in the spring, and we still haven't seen it."
Long-term care beds on P.E.I. are about equally split between public and private. However, the Greens suggested the care at public facilities is better.
Green MLA Karla Bernard said it is "concerning" how many patients in private long-term care homes are being transferred to public care homes "in the hopes that they would receive better care."
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