This Amherstburg man says the in-home care he receives is inadequate — despite his complaints

Untrained staff, unreliable scheduling, physical mishandling resulting in injury, and dangerous cooking practices are some of the allegations that a paraplegic Amherstburg, Ont., man is making about the disability support organization meant to help him.

Zachary Ghazali, who uses a wheelchair, said he is going public with his complaints about Assisted Living Southwestern Ontario (ALSO) because he feels he has no other recourse.

"It's been getting worse over time," Ghazali told CBC Windsor.

"It's been going on for far too long. It's kind of my fault that it went this long... I wanted the courage (to speak out) earlier. But unfortunately, I did not."

Ghazali, 33, has a rare inherited disorder known as Friedrich's ataxia. The disease involves progressive degeneration of the nervous system. He lost the ability to walk at the age of 20 and his physical problems increase with each passing year.

Despite such challenges, Ghazali has continued to live on his own. In early 2018, he moved into an apartment building on Front Road South that has been re-developed as supportive housing, with services provided by ALSO — a non-profit organization.

Ghazali's mother, Bernadine Damphouse, said her son needs assistance with all activities of daily living: getting in and out of bed, dressing himself, using the washroom and preparing meals.

"Zachary has lived with a lot of pain for a lot of years," Damphouse said. "But there's always hope. You have to hope."

Unfortunately, Ghazali feels his hope is constantly tested by problems with the frontline ALSO staff assigned to him. He said his support workers are often late — or have even failed to show up — without advance notice.

That's a health risk for Ghazali because his diabetic condition requires him to have regular meal times.

"I take my insulin with every meal," he explained. "I take my insulin depending on what I eat and when I eat... If blood sugar is too low, it's dangerous. If it's too high, it's dangerous."

The meals themselves have been a health risk, Ghazali said. He alleges that on more than one occasion, support workers have served him chicken that was raw or undercooked. He alleges he's also seen unhygienic kitchen practices, such as cross-contamination with raw meat.

For ALSO's part, the agency declined to be interviewed by CBC Windsor or otherwise address any of Ghazali's allegations.

In an email response, ALSO executive director Leigh Vachon stated that she cannot discuss any client's services due to her organization's duty to protect confidential information.