Seniors, health care advocacy groups concerned about continuing care changes this fall
EDMONTON – The Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE) Women’s Committee launches an awareness and letter campaign Strike a Change for Alberta Seniors, as Alberta’s Health Minister continues to roll out changes to Continuing Care.
For years, AUPE and health care and senior advocates have called on the government to provide a minimum of 4.5 hours of direct care for seniors in health care facilities, which would give seniors care they deserve. This call to action has been ignored.
The current legislation does not mention direct care hours per person, instead there is a certain number of hours per facility based on the number of residents.
AUPE Vice President Sandra Azocar said this removes government accountability as well as the care facilities’ responsibility to provide quality care to the residents since there is not transparency as to where government funding will be going. The Strike a Change for Alberta Seniors campaign invites AUPE members and all Albertans to add their name to letters which will be sent to the government to change course and improve the standard of care for seniors.
“These decisions are going to have a disastrous impact on seniors’ care in Alberta – especially now that Alberta Health Minister Adriana LaGrange, who reports to Premier Danielle Smith, will be calling all the shots instead of the health experts,” Azocar said.
Joining AUPE at Thursday’s press conference to echo this message was Friends of Medicare Executive Director Chris Gallaway and President Judy Lederer of Congress of Union Retirees of Canada - Edmonton Area Council.
“Seniors have worked their entire lives and deserve to retire and age comfortably but the cost of living has made it impossible to afford quality care,” Lederer said. “Many families are having to ensure their loved one is receiving proper care by hiring care workers themselves. It’s not right.”
“There is mountain of evidence that shows the need for a national standard of care, hiring more care workers and retaining them with better wages is the best way to fix the crisis we are in, but that’s not what we’re seeing from the government,” Gallaway said. “Seniors have helped build this province, they deserve the respect and dignity of quality, affordable care.”
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