Seniors' advocate calls on N.L. government to overhaul care system

Alex Kennedy · CBC News

· Posted: May 15, 2025 4:12 PM EDT | Last Updated: 7 minutes ago

A blistering study from Newfoundland and Labrador's seniors' advocator calls for a implicit overhaul of what she calls a breached system.

The study was written in response to the provincial government's inaction to instrumentality recommendations outlined by the auditor general's bureau successful February, says Susan Walsh, which followed a abstracted study that recovered troubling instances of mistreatment of seniors successful care.

"Unfortunately, we person not seen an implementation program from authorities connected the 23 recommendations that it contained," Walsh told reporters Thursday.

"The strategy is broken. It needs a afloat redesign.… This is simply a telephone to action. For excessively long, seniors person waited to spot alteration successful the semipermanent attraction and idiosyncratic attraction location systems and it has not happened."

The study outlines 11 caller recommendations, galore of which centre connected changing however semipermanent attraction and idiosyncratic attraction homes are governed successful Newfoundland and Labrador.

Walsh says she wants to spot each responsibilities of attraction for seniors — from location enactment to palliative attraction — moved from the Department of Health and Community Services to the caller Department of Seniors.

That section is simply a caller summation to authorities by Premier John Hogan. It's headed by Minister John Abbott.

WATCH | Susan Walsh says seniors are acrophobic to spell into semipermanent care:

"If fixed the due authority, this could beryllium the opening of change," Walsh said. "We are acrophobic that the assemblage services for seniors are getting mislaid successful the Department of Health, due to the fact that the Department of Health truly has specified a beardown absorption connected acute care."

The study besides calls connected the caller section to make an enactment program to spot February's recommendations implemented. It wants to spot that done done a continuum of attraction strategy that sets legislative standards for programs and services and outlines consequences for non-compliance.

Walsh pointed to authorities presently successful spot successful Alberta that could payment Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

"We're the lone state successful the state astatine this constituent who doesn't person semipermanent attraction legislation. But now, we person a learning. Let's not conscionable make authorities for semipermanent care, and past 10 years from present realize, 'Oh, we should person a continuum.' Let's spell determination today," she said.

Walsh said the household and nonmigratory assembly strategy besides needs to beryllium greatly improved to assistance seniors. She called for each idiosyncratic and semipermanent attraction location successful the state to person its ain assembly that reports to a assembly for each wellness portion of Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services.

In the House of Assembly connected Tuesday, PC Leader Tony Wakeham brought the contented to the floor.

"The situation with this is the deficiency of action," helium said. "They make bully reports, but past it's highly frustrating erstwhile the recommendations you marque don't get acted upon."

Health Minister Krista Lynn Howell told the House that enactment is underway to make continuum attraction authorities and draught operational standards for idiosyncratic attraction homes.

Speaking with reporters astatine a abstracted health-related lawsuit connected Thursday, Hogan — who was the curate of wellness successful February — said the section accepted the findings of the February study and takes the recommendations seriously.

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