EDMONTON — The Alberta government is facing calls to stop admitting people with complex mental illnesses to long-term care homes until the risks have been fully examined.
EDMONTON — The Alberta government is facing calls to stop admitting people with complex mental illnesses to long-term care homes until the risks have been fully examined.
Seniors advocacy groups called for the suspension along with the opposition New Democratic Party at a press conference on Monday.
They said the violence stems from mixing residents at Calgary's CareWest Carnell Belcher facility with residents who have vastly different needs.
Charles Hamel, president of the Friends of Col. Belcher Association, said that while it was once a top-class facility, he could no longer recommend it for veterans because of unsafe conditions.
Hamel said former Health Minister Jason Copping was aware of the risks and agreed to end the placements, but Mr Copping lost his seat in last year's state election and that instruction was no longer being followed.
“We've been stonewalled,” Hamel said.
Lori Sigurdson, NDP critic on seniors' issues, said the idea behind moving adults with mental illness to continuing care is to ease the strain on hospitals.
He said there are currently 58 patients at the 175-bed CareWest Colonel Belcher, some of whom are high-risk.
“This temporary measure has created a stressful and unsafe environment for all residents, staff and visitors,” she said.
Although CareWest Colonel Belcher has a security guard on staff, it's not uncommon for police to be called and residents sometimes have to take shelter in their rooms until a situation is resolved, Sigurdson said.
Results of a freedom of information request shared by the NDP found that between January 2022 and February 2023, police were called to CareWest Colonel Belcher 56 times.
Many calls were classified as disconnects to 911. Others were for welfare checks or responding to disturbances or mental health concerns.
Ann Sorby said her family removed her father from the facility in November 2022 after he was assaulted twice.
She said she fears the program, which began as a temporary measure during the COVID-19 pandemic, will be implemented in other long-term care facilities if it hasn't already been implemented.
Lisa Johnson, whose father is a military veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, said the program has put additional stress on her father, who is also a resident.
“Unless the situation changes, we are left with no option but to put him on a waiting list for transfer,” she said.
Alberta Health said in a statement that 29 beds at CareWest Colonel Belcher were converted in November 2022 from regular continuing care space to space for patients with complex needs, including mental health issues.
But Johnson, Hamill and Sigurdson said the placements were backdated to 2021.
Health Minister Adriana LaGrange told reporters she was concerned by what she had heard and was asking the Ministry of Health to investigate.
She said there is a shortage of adequate care facilities but safety is the top priority, which is why the province is overhauling the public health-care system. The reform will see the dissolution of the provincial health authority, Alberta Health Services, and the creation of four new governing bodies that will report to LaGrange.
Mr Sigurdsson said he had been promised a review and risk assessment would be carried out during the trial but this never happened.
The government did not immediately provide an estimate of how many long-term care facilities across the state are tasked with housing people with complex mental illnesses.
NDP mental health critic Janet Eremenko said staff at long-term care centres aren't equipped or equipped with the expertise to handle diverse care needs.
“Psychiatric care is not geriatric care and vice versa,” she said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 27, 2024.
Lisa Johnson, The Canadian Press
