Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 1994-01-12, Page 8Page 8 — Lucknow Sentinel, Wednesday, January 12, 1994 MI by Shirley Keller The OMH's: policy on care of aging Health care -eosts in Canada are 'staggering. ' In the recent federal election, the future of Medicare was on everyone's mind. Universality - the provision that absolutely every Canadian is entitled to the best health care this country, can afford - came into serious question. In Ontario, the provincial Ministry of Health under the present New Democratic 'government has begun to•look at•all.aspects of health care delivery with an eye to cutting costs while maintaining an..acceptable level of service. It's a •horrendous task fraught with myriads of problems and concerns depending upon "whose ox is being, gored". It's always difficult for the public to deal in generalities when it's their own individual and specific needs that interest them. During 1993, the • provincial. government published two important papers which dealt with the pressing matters surrounding long-term care for Ontario's elderly and disabled. . The plan outlined was for reform based on the,findings from a wide- ranging, in -.depth cofisultation 'process with Ontario's citizens. Something like 3,000 meetings were held across the province, involving more than 75,000 people. 'There was widespread agreement among consumers, service providers, planners and' others that there needs to be less fear of aging more assurance that seniors will continue to be valued and their needs met. To that 'end, the following issues were identified as paramount in any provincial health care reform: • There must be more emphasis on community=based services that are locally planned and delivered. • The District,Health Council in each area should stake the lead role in planning long-term care in their communities. • The system 'mast .become more responsive to people's needs, more flexible according to people's lifestyles. • There must be better co- ordination of services to provide easier 'access, improved service, increased • happiness and greater satisfaction for the elderly. • A single telephone number should provide immediate access to all related services with only one form to fill out: • • There must be continuum of care so that individuals can move from acute care to facility care to -home care without fuss or muss as their health improves = or deteriorates., • There• needs to be new sensitivity to • the needs of the terminally ill and their families. • There should be -a greater focus on wellness, health maintenance and independent living with dignity restored wherever possible. • Fairer funding is essential. • The system must be open and .inclusive. This -series of articles has been prepared for this newspaper to help readers become familiar with the .proposed' changes, the 'reasons behind them, the possible effect on ordinary people . and some insight into the lives of folks who are living -, within such , situations already. The articles. are based mainly on the problems of the elderly because they make up by far the largest percentage of long-term , care recipientsin the province, and especially in the . communities served by this newspaper. A closer loop at what the government is proposing A major reform of the long-term care of Ontario's elderly and adults with physical disabilities is underway - and the miracle is that, • it. is both cost-effective and greatly appreciated, by those who need it. Simply stated, the -plan is to reduce expensesby assisting people to remain in their own homes rather than confine them to an institution. Who • would- not prefer the freedom and the privacy of home over the less personal regimentation of a nursing home or some other public long-term care facility? What's more, though the provincial government will set the policies, •standards and guidelines for care, local communities will tailor their programs to suit the particular needs of their citizens. Final decisions for long-term care will be made in the community, where it is to be delivered, Consumers will have input into these decisions - and the general public will have the opportunity to provide direction concerning them. District Health Councils will play a' leading role in this reform. (In Huron and Perth Counties where there is no District Health Council at this time, the province's long- term care division from London is responsible.) During this • year, existing resources in the community will be identified and involved in discussions about: the reform. Resources which are needed but currently unavailable in the community' will be listed . and prioritized. ! „ By 1994, a local plan will have been, made and a budget for the first -stage of implementation will be appropriated. Wellness and health promotion are key, elements in the government's plan, • Services such as home support, friendly visiting, day care centres; health and personal support programs and various social- and recreational opportunities will be established and enhanced under the government's plan, • Moreover, rehabilitation services will figure in this plan, ranging from -health teaching ° to intensive therapy. The emphasis will be to return people to their previous independent levels of living. It will be simpler to access i services. It will be easier to co- ordinate several services for one individual. There will be a single entry point to the system - something that consumers have been requesting for confusing labyrinth of services working at cross-purposes. An individual in the system will fill out one information form; be assigned to one case worker and have the full range of long-term are and support services open to m, including the choice of a ission to a nursing home should that become necessary or desirable. The plan calls for the establishment' of multi -service agencies - offices where resources will be co-ordinated and where delivery of service will be administered. Multi -service agencies will: • dispense information; • determine eligibility for long- term care services; • provide case management; • authorize admissions to nursing homes etc.; • deliver in-home health and person.; support services such as visiting nursing, homemaking, physiotherapy, meal programs, volunteer transportation etc.; t make arrangements for attendant care services;. • be responsive to cultural, racial, spiritual and linguistic needs of individuals in the program. The government's plan has given importance as well to respite care for family care -givers who need time away to rest, restore and revitalize. These services can.be in- home or facility -based, depending on the requirements of the individual: There will be ' more general support for family care -givers too. Things like counselling, support groups, training and education will be top priority for government because it' is recognized family care -givers are vitally important in the battle' to reduce costs to taxpayers. Palliative care will be given more attention. under., the government's plan. Money is allocated for the education of palliative care workers; for volunteer visiting programs and for greater expertise in pain and symptom management for the dying. 2u0unuuF9�IIId��tMIR11�l;IIW� r Long term proposals are like rays of sunlight Old age. It's that time of life that will come to many of us - .beyond retirement, beyond fitness, beyond wellness, before death, Old age` has little to recommend it: Some believeit is •a different country to which people go ... and from which they never return. It's' a bleak reality to be faced. Yet if the Ontario government has anything to do with . it, old age could become less frightening. and more upbeat; less humiliating and. more dignified for men and women in this province. The new long-term care proposals are like rays of sunlig reaking, over a cloudy, grey day. They speak ,of change; they promise hope. To put it more succinctly, there will be fewer "warehouses" for the elderly - rest homes, nursing homes, 'geriatric wings in hospitals. We'll be taking the aged off the shelf and putting them back into life where they will be happier,, healthier and heartier. It's ' a new twist on an old tradition. . Not all that many . years ago, elderly parents often livedwith their children.. Granny helped with• household chores and watched the children; Grampa tended . the gardens and did,"odd jobs": They were contributing family members who shared in the, work and the decisions as well as the joy and the fun. When disability or sickness sidelined the grandparents, family members rallied round to care for them. It wasn't always easy - and there were cases of neglect and abuse. But Ontario's elderly were not the respbnsibility of government in those days. Only the ones without family and means were cared for out of the public funds - and too oftenonly to, minimum standards. • Family life has been drastically altered in Ontario - and perhaps it's just as well. Families are busy. Schedules are hectic. There's often no room in the modern homes to . accommodate grandparents even when they are mobile. There's definitely no time for tending them when they are disabled or sick. In today's world, the elderly are often persuaded to sign up for institutional care because it's best for the fartrily, and not necessarily best for the aging individual. "Canada has one of the highest rates of institutionalized elderly in the world," says Susan Wolnik, an independent consultant who works out of the long-term care office in London on a free lance basis. "The . days when children have aging parents come to live with I them, are gone," Wolnik believes. Naturally., some of these arrangements still exist and the government will try to support them in many different' and approved ways. One of the most appreciated is respite care - the offer of alternate care for live-in family elderly while •the caregivers enjoy time away on vacation, or leive the home. for short-term business or personal ' reasons. "But people's expectations about independence are growing," Wolnik says. "The elderly want to stay in their own hothes for Is long as possible. They want to have their own space, their own surroundings." The government wants that too. Overall it'snot only the preference turn to page 10