“Families need to be heard” | Fixing Canada's long-term care crisis with Kathy Pearsall

Broken — the word used by advocates to describe the publicly funded, largely privately delivered long-term care sector in Canada.

The interviewee that I’m bringing you today, Kathy Pearsall, is no stranger to this system. Kathy wrote a book at the end of 2020 called Broken: Long-Term Care in Canada, which outlines the problems in long-term care.

Kathy witnessed directly how suboptimal the care that her father received in a for-profit care home was, and has been a seniors advocate ever since — continuing this work for 20 years after her own father passed away. The decades old issues surrounding the long-term care sector in Canada have also been exacerbated by the pandemic.

Residents in long-term care are vulnerable. Families of seniors long for a safe place for their aging loved ones to call home to live out the last few years of their life. But they are not told about the factory-style, assembly-line care.

As an independent journalist, Kathy is affiliated with the Canada-wide advocacy group called Hands of Hope. They have outlined national regulations that they would like to see legislated in order to begin to repair the issues occurring in long-term care.

In this interview, Kathy delves into the proposed national regulations that she wants to see enforced and legislated at the federal level. The following is a brief summary:

  • WORKFORCE – maximum staffing ratio of 1:4 care provider to resident; hire full time and permanent part time staff; increase management credentials and experience requirements; in-house menu planning.
  • EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT – Standardized training; revised curriculum for workers to include resident rights, dementia care, etc; build teams of collaborators between care providers; eliminate online training.
  • FAMILY INVOLVEMENT – Family invited to advise and partake in direct care/life enrichment; legislate advisory councils.
  • LIFE ENRICHMENT – “Recreation staff” to be re-named “life enrichment” staff; all day activity not to be limited/time slotted; individualized care; continuity of care.
  • WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION – protection from employer reprisal.
  • INSPECTIONS – Annual inspections and handling of complaints conducted by autonomous agency separate from government; inspection teams have long-term care experience & empowered to conduct investigations at all levels; inspectors respond to concerns of advisory councils.
  • FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY – Random financial audits conducted annually by auditor general, w/ full public disclosure; families and advocacy groups have right to obtain financial statements, annual staffing plans; supplier contracts tendered and made public.
  • PENALTIES – Governments must immediately penalize bad actors through financial means and/or removal of license; publicly disclosed.
  • PHASE OUT FOR-PROFIT CARE – Cap profits at five per cent of annual revenues; limit annual management salary raises to rates of inflation; enable not-for-profit and municipal operators to fairly compete with for-profit operators for licenses.
Tamara Ugolini

Senior Editor

Tamara Ugolini is an informed choice advocate turned journalist whose journey into motherhood sparked her passion for parental rights and the importance of true informed consent. She critically examines the shortcomings of "Big Policy" and its impact on individuals, while challenging mainstream narratives to empower others in their decision-making.

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