HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 1962-01-31, Page 2of
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Bruce Municipalities Are No Longer
Responsible For Indigent Patients
The• action of Bruce County --
Council at the final meeting of To transplant an old'. or ill
the :January session. on Saturday, ,pen from among their famil-
January °20th, : relieves •munic iar surroundings, from amongst
parities of the -responsibility of those . they know and have lived.
maintaining 'indigent patients .in with, to an institutign where
private nursing homes. they °are just another statistic,
• Officials `of the Ontario De- and where na one has any • real
partment of ; , Welfare attended concern about them''as ,a person,
the: January session to discUss Just a 'body,: is to commit %them
• the. matter. At the• closing •ses= to a living death, and believe' you
cion of Council the report.- of • me, if Mrs. Irwin is transferred.
°the County Hume Committee, 'of to', Walkerton,' this., is just what
which Reeve George Joynt is . could very easily happen. She
chairman, was presented 'and will be exceedingly upset emo-
.approved' by. Council. • tionally,..her, feeling of belonging
.The report was tabled at 'a will. have ' disappeared, and her
special meetingof the Village physical condition will deterior--
Counc it ' on Tuesday . evening of ate; At Pinecrest Manor, she is
last week. It ' read as : follows:' one. • of us, .:she belongs here
"Some months ago a .survey
was taken to find the number
- of indigent persons that were
,being, maintained in nursing
homes by each municipality since
the opening of the new, home
Several reeves have.. ,advised
that these persons did , not wish
• � to • Brucelea
to., be transferred
Haven. '. It is . right ' that you can-
not order them to go to the
new home.. However, you can
:advise . them - and : 'the operators
of `these nursing homes , that you
will not continue to pay for their
maintenance in ' . the. nursing
• •home beyond a certain.. date. At
the same time you offer the al-
ternative of • making an applica-
tion for" the ,Bruce County Home,
where they •.will receive equal
or 'better ` care.
"The • cost Of maintaining these
.g
a •
P tients : is ''considerably less . in'
the County Home .and the care
—given—the:resident . is equal, or..
in , most • " cases much ' :.superior
than in , •a nursing :home. Your
cominittee strongly • recommends
that each municipality': reviews
• this type of indigent ' they may.
be maintaining.:.If ,youare hav-
' ing • difficulty in arranging a
transfer, they should. then pro-,
• ceed as. outlined • above."
Letter Of ',protest
The first patient in Lucknow
to . come ,Under , the new regula
tion was. Mrs.' Mae : Irwin, who.
'/Was'; transferred from ' Pinecrest'
Manor • to Brucelea Haven • at •
Walkerton ;on Monday, January
22nd.
Prior to °this action, 1VMr. Geo.
Newbold, :proprietor. , of Pinecrest •
• Manor;' had; sent the.' following
letter: ` 'to Reeve .;G.. W. Joynt,
and individual copies to each
member of , Council °and' .the
Village' . clerk.
January .:14th, 1962.
Jo 1 good value at all tunes: for their
nt', •
amongst all the -others she knows;
and 'she is assured of all the lov-
ing 'care . and kindness she could
.expect 'in her own home among
her own family. This is our mis-
sion here in Lucknow, to be ' a
family to our . patients, . to• care
for ' their needs, physical, emo-
tional and spiritual, and to date,
we have been gratified, inward-
ly,'at the •:success, .we have had
for. ' our efforts.
I' gave up 2a, • years in industry
Morder to. . find a place where
I could serve and be of value._
to others. .I left Toronto, where
the dollar 'bill and the ,getting•
of` it• is much more important ta.
most than, the ,human values;.
'Where ' . materialism ' supersedes
the humanities, and we felt that
in Lucknow we had 'found .the
ideal place'.': in, which to. be • of.
service to the community: 'The
care and welfare of our senior
citizens • is mast chalIenging and you made• ,they statement -to: me'
important w ork, - an.d most :; re- that •'you would .do: allyoucould
warding, especially • if . you could for us, in the; interest of, the nurs-
see the change in our patients
over this,past year: They enjoy
staying alive, and, instead of • just
passing through each day mech-
•anically, they„ .look'. forward :to
each day With .pleasure. ;
The definition of welfare work
from .the. Oxfordi.diction�a ': is.
.I'Y ;
'effortsto make' life worth liv
.Ac o i !the local business men by_,:the:
g., c rdmg . .to the .asst . is ,
sue: of ' the Sentinel, .you ,•. sir.'very presence of our. nursing
are the welfare •com ttee. Does home, which is considerable. We
welfare work to You mea • 'have • faith ; that. :Lucknow' is' and
y mean the will continu e to • e, a place where
Dictionary 'definition of' -efforts. a b.
• the individual .person ' imore aim
to . make`' life ',worth living.: • ,By
moi _. portant ‘than. all ; the',material'
moving Mrs. 'Irwin�'to the insti ,.
tution : ••at, • Walkerton, life has
things. .. I• worked, ; for. ; years for.
'worth '•a firm in : Toronto . whoseorts
tceasedthe
It has'ceased to 'have a meanin put dollar above. the, individ-
g.
and : will be /only ..an , existence.
Quoting from the Sentinel again,
you are reported: assaying 'with
consideration .. of all the rate-
payers that they should: receive
j1A . - t NTINEL, •LUCKNQW, ONTARIO
LADIES' NIGHT SPEAKER
HOWARD HIIFFMAN
Guest speaker at the Lions Club
Ladies' ' Night last.. week was
Howard ` Huffman. ' of Orillia,
Governor' of District A-9.
tions, and must 'be answered
honestly, with the best interests
of the person :concerned at heart,
before 'we destroy 'the: last 'traces
i
of • a .normal life:, this • crippled
lady has ,here. •
Has -it been forgotten so soon
that not 14 months ago, during
my negotiations to : take. up. this;
work, the village council arrang-
ed to have. the method of the as-
sessing''; • the . nursing home
changed, without my knowledge
until I read it in the Sentinel,
and that the taxeson this:.enter-
prise
enterprise •were alrnost.'.:doubled to
nearly '$600.00 • per year. Have.
the council heard -any complaint,
from this' corner' in that regard.•'
And have 'you forgotten too, that
Ing home? This'. nursing home,,
in: addition to providing . a most
necessaryservice ;: and function
in this ,community, • also. .adds
shine $15,000.00. , $16;800.80 in,
payroll to thepurchasing power
of our • , taff and .its 'families. in
the vilTifge. Then ',too, there
is
the business
generated amongst.
Mr. G. `'W. y
Reeve .. • ,
Lucknow,' Ontario.'•
Re: Mrs. Mae Irwin
Dear Sir;
.We have )ust receiv`ed•:a most
J.
distressing ; telephone •scall frofn-
Mr. Howard Agnew, relative', ' to;
the completion of papers of ad-
mission of the above mentioned
• to the County'' Home at Walker=
ton, Ontario. As you are aware,
Mrs. Irwin, a long time resident
of Lucknow, and now an indi-''
gent patient here, is confined to
her bed or wheel chair, being
, paralyzed overmore than half
of her 'body: > She had alsoa:lost
the
powers of speech,•, and there
fore finds the 'utmostdifficulty
in cormunicating.with others,;
`As ' a result of . the'• frustration,
etc set up by 'her `afflictions
tax' dollar.'
You : must remember that any
one of the taxpayers might some.
j ea3= find . himself •dependent on
the municipality for his care.; Do
You . think '••that, they will ; think
their dollars got •good value if
'just when they need the care
and love of the rest ''of the com-
are • cruelly and arbitrarily moved,
muruty,, they argi shunted off .;and, ...
shelved in , an institution?' In the, away from their natural sur-
a roundings? You, Mr.' Joynt ac`s:
case sof Mrs • Irvwnn the cost +
ti
she is highly emotiosal, and high
strung and , it 'hag only been
through the patience of our staff
ha• vourselves, many , of.whom
e known and worked . with.
her over the past years, that
we have made her into a happy,~
cheerful and • contented lady.
There 'is "much more-. to the care
of older and ill persons •than
barely"rproviding, institutionally,
the necessities of life. .Loving
care, ' ,understanding, .friendship,
the creation of ,a • desire to be
needed or wanted, the atmos-
phere . of belonging somewhere
for some purpose, these 'are :'the
' • things that 'go' to make' the later
years of our citizens ..easier to
pass through.
ual. My family -knew ;this, and
it is. my earnest desire •that they
won't , come. to the conclusion,
here in Lucknow, that the ma-
terial things are,the god that
everyone puts up above every-
thing else; . everywhere.
Then, toe, 'I and. moved to ask
,that if you intended to do .all
you, could for us here in our
work, how do you. think we can
continue to Meet die increase in
our taxes, aur overhead, and
our ' responsibility to- our staff
and their families, if our patients
•
,
doesn't • amount . to more than
$28.00 per month insofar as the.
.Village is concerned, and is small
cost to • retain human faith 'and
dignity.: How do we 'manage.'to
find: the money for the education
of our younger children, without
.complaint, but when the. welfare
,of our older citizens is at stake,
•
we find.it; so hard to 'meet the
infinitismal amount ' required to
preserve their • dignity,. and purer
• pose ifl hiv'mg How "d
age; to meet 'the operating defi
tits of the arena without • com-
plaint, • but shelve 'Our sick and
afflicted? How do we pay the
increased insurance 'rates, con-
tinue with the • lighting, 'road
surfacing plans,'" .sidewalk re-
placements, and ' even ': the in
creased salary'schedule for coun-
cil members, etc., all without
,complaint, but find it impossible
to 'maintain in the most natural
'surroundings as is passible, ,..a
fellow human who needs,•: care,
love, understanding; patience,
tolerance, and the desire to live
andshe feels she • Ise wanted
r cared about? These, ;Mr,
'Joynt, are. 'soul searching ques-
. WEDNEJSDA i • ,SAN 31st, 196
KINCARDINE CLEANERS
Mklwinter Dry Cleaning Special
ENDS MONDAY NOON,
�th
.uckndw, St. -Helens Whitech.ur�h
Lochalsh. and Holyrood.
being : responsible, must : answer
these:. questions anddecide which,
are 'the. best, interests being serv-
ed,
the' small monthly. cost to.
the • taxpayers, or the • value of
Mrs. Irwin's future - in' fact
the future of any..Lucknow tax-
payer who might in the future
'he
lace
'io Or t
.ont n.
. her s
•
be inp
p.
of • a service institution in our.
community or the future of the
staff 'and ,'their families or •our.
own future here. There, are many
thousands of dollars ,involved in
this .venture, which will, I' hope,
;sere, the community for"
many
years to. come. However, if moves'.
such as this one:, anticipated for
Mrs Irwin occur,' •our ,:position •
:becomes' most difficult and our
obligations'; harder to .face up, to;
I " therefore request that . this..
Cruel ' 'and'. heart -breaking .; decis ,
ion may be. reconsidered, ' and
that 'Mrs:. I;rwin be lett. among
those ;. whom she `' knows, has
worked, • with, who ' know and
understand` her and her peculiar
problems, `and • ;who dot their best,
to•.make her feel as though she
is, still a. member:• of Our eom--
:.m1iiriity, "wanted and eared::about.,.
May this receive :your • Most'
Earnest. and 'Honest considera
tion, please.
Yours: very truly,
' . PI.NECREST MANOR,
George A. Newbold.
Not Prot in' - ` Assessment ssessment
• >x • est g
Mr. Newbold ' was , invited'- to
attend last 'week's special • meet-
ing, at ' which.' County Assessor
:Everett::. Finnigan • ,was present.
As in his. 'letter,. Mr. Newbold
repeated that• hewas riot 'com-
;plaining about his assessment.
• The . Nursing Home ; assess-
ment•was in the ;news in .Nov-
ember of 1960, when Harold
Greer' appealed against his as-
sessrent which Was.. about, doub-
led. and a ausiness tax assessed
for the first time. Mr. Newbold,
who • obtained possession of the
Nursing Home on December .,lst,
'stated: that 'the first . he > knew
.of the 'increased 'assessment was
when he read of it in The : Sen:
tiriel. Council pointed, ;out that
the. assessment on which ,the
1961• taxes are`id'`is• completed
'2� ,
by not later. than September of
the previous year. •
•
Mr.: `Newbold . said he was sat-
isfied with' ; Mr. Finnigan's ', ex.
planation /of the method of as-
sessnient.'
Would :Cost About $60:
It• was pointed ' out ` to Mr
Newbold. ,that the Department of:
rants. • are 80%
Welfare of a'
g
maximum • of $100 per month for ;
indigent patients, and an the
basis of Pinecrest Manor rates ;'
would: be a monthly charge to
the ; municipality of approxi-
Mately . $60. The care of indigent,
patients at : the County
is' covered in. the, County rate,
:arid . 'it; was stated
that.: the Oro-. ro-:
vince:.had put th,, onus on .the •
•
counties to • provide seeh.m
proved . accommodation .for 'the •'
age& and infirmed
,It was pointed, out that a. few
Years . •ago, "indigent" patient
costs, had :got • out of control lo --,•
tally, and reached a • levy of
some 7 ;; mills before the situa-
tion : was "cleaned • up
• 'that the.
Mr Newbold agreed
$601.' ‘cost to the 't own:changed :;
the, financial" picture somewhat,
but .'otherwise •he "'held to: "his ..,p
started opinions ; 'regarding ' the •
"humxanitarian", aspects',
,
- Mr. .Newbold 'contended` that •
it was `against , the . considered
` 1authorities
that such;•a :transfer be made, It . •.,
was, .emphatically pointed out
that any ;such transfer or ad-
mission , • to. the County. Home . ;
must . be ,'authorized under' the
signature of the 'patient's; eer
sonal physician' and which: was •
done in•,•th is case, upon' the
out of• a -lengthyuestion a
naire regarding;. the: patient:
Highlight of the: calmly
straight -spoken .,repartee came
when ,Reeve Joynt . said that it •
wasn''t necessary for Mr. New-
bold to" put such "poppycock"
into ` :a` letter ' when she .was: as -
close:
s close to ., him as •his telephone.
Mr Newbold ; replied ' that he
wrote the letter "to get his mes-
sage across," ,for when he talk-
ed to him, • Mr: Joynt did all the;
talking;' • •
The Reeve made it ;clear;, .that'''
as 'lie, forsees itt . nursing home
residents :;of the future,, will be•'..
those' :only, who can pay their.
'own'' way
•
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CAN INCREASE YOUR
PROFITS
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