The Vancouver Sun just completed a series of reports on licensing reports of various community daycare and seniors care facility in Vancouver Coastal and Fraser Health Authorities. There series included profiles of facilities that demonstrate the major commitment and improvements being made by BC's Seniors care sector to improve the quality of seniors care in communities across British Columbia. Here is the BC Care Providers Association's response to the Vancouver Sun's series:
The two care providers featured in Friday's report by Chad Skelton on long term care in Metro Vancouver demonstrate the major commitments and improvements being made by BC's seniors care sector to strengthen the quality of care in communities across our province.
The ownership and staff of Surrey's Fleetwood Place received a perfect inspection rating from regional health inspectors. The new owners of Valleyhaven have turned a troubled facility around and this month they are celebrating the opening of an excellent new 91 bed home in Chilliwack.
The inspection reports used in Chad's report only tell a small part of the story. When it comes to patient satisfaction, the results are even more positive. A 2008 survey of over 3,000 families at 80 residential care facilities in Fraser Health concluded that seniors are very happy with the quality of care they are receiving.
Over 90% of the families and seniors surveyed said they were satisfied with the quality of direct care, nursing and administration services they were receiving in long term care facilities just like the ones featured by the Sun in Surrey and Chilliwack.
Our Association has been representing non-profit, private and denominational seniors care providers in BC for many years. Our members employ more than 7,000 people and care for over 12,000 seniors a year in long-term care, assisted living and home support each year in BC. We know the value families place on dignified and high quality senior's care for some of the most vulnerable members of our society
That is why they should rest assured that care providers are committed to the highest quality of service. Here are some examples of measures seniors' care providers are supporting and initiating that families can count on:
- Accreditation - Most facilities are now accredited. Under the Qmentum model of Accreditation, facilities now are marked on over 460 quality indicators, from delivery of care to providing work life balance for care staff. BC facilities fund the accreditation process themselves - unlike their Ontario counterparts who receive funding from the government to become accredited.
- Patient Quality Review Board - The new Board provides an extra layer of protection to the public. Most investigators are highly experienced nurses who follow through to resolution.
- Care Aide Registry - Care providers have supported and actively participated in this new registry to combat elder abuse - the first of its kind in Canada. Care providers are reporting cases of abuse and people are being removed from the Registry.
- Patient Safety - BC care providers have supported strengthening the current Residents Bill of Rights and eviction procedures for patients that may be a danger to other residents and staff.
- Health and Safety Guidelines - Our Association introduced comprehensive health and safety guidelines that were recognized by the Canadian Healthcare Association as a leading practice in Canada. The safety tool helps care providers measure workload and assess new patients being referred to them by health authorities to make sure they have proper staffing to provide quality care.
- Ongoing Staff Training - Our sector is currently developing a comprehensive human resources strategy with Ministries of Health and Skills Development that will include measures and recommendations aimed at improving ongoing access to staff training for seniors care aides, LPNs and home support workers.
- Funding - Our Association has been advocating for increased funding levels for more staffing and the creation of a special task force to speed up placement of seniors in home and community care that are waiting months in acute care hospital wards.
- Ombudsperson - Seniors care providers across the province have been fully co-operative (co-operation) with the BC Ombudsperson's investigation on seniors care, particularly as it relates to full disclosure of funding rates for all seniors care facilities - including health authority operated sites and services
- Community Care and Assisted Living Act - The BC residential care sector is subject to a far higher degree of scrutiny and oversight than health authority extended care units that operate under the Hospital Act. Most residential care operators are covered by the Community Care and Assisted Living Act and required to make licensing reports public. This is not the case for public extended care facilities operating under the Hospital Act.
- Ed Helfrich, CEO - BC Care Providers Association
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