Independent review ordered into Community Living B.C. after starvation death

Akshay Kulkarni · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 02, 2025 8:14 PM EDT | Last Updated: 12 hours ago

The B.C. Crown corp that oversees the attraction of developmentally disabled radical volition person its home-share programme independently reviewed aft an inquest into a starvation decease earlier this year.

Florence Girard, a pistillate with Down syndrome, weighed astir 50 pounds erstwhile she died successful 2018 successful the Port Coquitlam location of Astrid Dahl, a caregiver funded done Crown corp Community Living B.C. (CLBC).

After the week-long inquest into Girard's decease successful January, a assemblage made 11 recommendations to CLBC, including amended wage for front-line caregivers and changes to enactment household members of a susceptible idiosyncratic who privation to attraction for their comparative successful their home. 

CLBC, the corp that oversees the attraction of developmentally disabled people, was created successful 2005. It is successful complaint of caring for 29,000 British Columbians with disabilities specified arsenic autism, fetal intoxicant syndrome and Down syndrome.

Now, the state says it is commissioning an autarkic reappraisal of the organization's home-sharing program, to beryllium conducted by contractor Tamar Consultancy.

"Although CLBC has made a batch of changes since 2018, we inactive perceive astir concerns," Poverty Reduction Minister Sheila Malcolmson told CBC News.

"And contiguous we've launched a reappraisal of CLBC's home-sharing programme to marque definite that the changes [made] since 2018 are getting radical the highest prime of work possible."

The province's connection says that it would make an advisory assemblage made up of individuals, families and work providers to pass the reappraisal and springiness recommendations to the ministry. The reappraisal is expected to beryllium finished successful precocious September.

Malcolmson told CBC News that the autarkic reappraisal would outgo the authorities $75,000, and said the authorities needed to cognize the home-sharing exemplary was arsenic beardown arsenic possible.

"We are truly counting connected location sharing. Four 1000 families crossed B.C. unfastened their homes to adults with developmental disabilities," she said. "The request is growing.

"It's a exemplary that holds truthful overmuch committedness for radical that, astatine different time, would person been surviving successful institutions."

In a quality release, the CEO of CLBC's committee welcomed the autarkic review.

"We privation to bash everything we tin to marque definite this exemplary is arsenic beardown arsenic it tin be, due to the fact that this is astir keeping radical safe, and we judge the fig of radical supported done the home-sharing exemplary volition turn considerably," Shane Simpson said.

In its statement, the state says that CLBC made a fig of changes aft Girard's decease successful 2018, including mandating location visits each 3 months and yearly doc visits.

WATCH | Down syndome advocator and Girard's sister telephone for changes:

Organization had faced calls for shakeup

Advocates and unions had called for a shakeup of CLBC after the inquest into Girard's death, including demands its committee resign.

Tamara Taggart, the president of advocacy enactment Down Syndrome B.C., said the state didn't request to prosecute a consultancy steadfast to marque changes astatine CLBC, fixed the inquest's recommendations successful January.

"I person nary thought however overmuch wealth this is costing, but immoderate it is, it's excessively overmuch due to the fact that we cognize what the answers are," she told CBC News.

"To proceed to consult and probe and person immoderate nationalist consultations and interviews and each that benignant of worldly ... I consciousness similar I americium successful the movie Groundhog Day," Taggart added.

Taggart said that she was funny to spot what happens with the review, but was captious of the authorities for hiring an outer consultancy steadfast for the job.

In a connection sent to CBC News astatine the time, CLBC said that nary of its existent committee members were connected the committee successful 2018 and that by law, the committee indispensable see representation from radical with developmental disabilities, household members of those who person services funded by CLBC, and Indigenous people.

Following the Girard inquest, CLBC's CEO provided an "unreserved apology" to Girard's family, friends and loved ones and said the enactment had failed the B.C. woman's family.

In a statement at the time, CLBC said it welcomed the inquest's recommendations and said it was committed to taking factual actions to fortify the transportation of location sharing services.