Health budget builds new facilities but causes concern over senior care staffing
By Jeremy Simes
Photo by Jeremy Simes. Janice Platzke, treasurer of SEIU-West believes this budget doesn't scratch the surface of health care needs, especially employment in long-term care facilities.
Saskatchewan’s record-setting $5 billion health budget plans to build new buildings but leaves much concern over adequate staffing in long-term care facilities.
“It’s a real challenge to see your loved ones suffer because there are not enough hands or bodies to take care of them. Honestly, it’s not the staff’s fault. The residents are truly losers in this,” said Janice Platzke, treasurer of SEIU-West.
Both of Platzke’s parents are residents of a long-term care facility. Platzke’s mother broke her left hip six weeks ago and, as of last Friday, she fell out of a wheelchair and broke her right one.
“Now she will be wheelchair-bound for the rest of her life. That breaks my heart,” she said.
But health minister Dustin Duncan said 750 more full-time equivalent positions will be added to long-term care.
The Regional Heath Authorities received just over $3 billion, an increase of $108 million compared to last year. However, “not all facilities indicated that staffing was the main issue, rather equipment and maintenance,” Duncan explained.
The completion of long-term care facilities in Biggar, Kelvington, Kipling, Maple Creek and Prince Albert will cost $27 million. “We need to make an investment in our facilities as well as our people. We need to replace the old ones and maintain the ones that still serve a useful purpose,” Duncan said.
Overall, $95 million was given for capital investment, down $69 million from the previous year. Duncan said this was due to facilities being almost completed, and that most of the money is for planned spending.
For example, Extendicare home facilities in Regina plan to be replaced. “Pioneer Village is outdated. We plan to renew the beds in that facility,” he added.
However, Platzke stressed that having adequate staff for these new facilities is of greater importance. “If you don’t have people who are going to take care of that home, it’s just a shell,” she said.
Danielle Chartier, health critic for the NDP is happy that more long-term care facilities are being built. “But we need senior care to be of high quality now. The stories we keep hearing over and over are not reflecting the long-term care our grandparents and parents need and deserve,” she said.
The NDP introduced a private member’s bill earlier this month that called for quality care standards. “We were hoping to see that in this budget. We’d like to see them reintroduce quality of care standards and that our facilities are staffed properly,” Chartier said.
Duncan said he will study the bill to see if it will benefit seniors more than what is currently being done under special care home guidelines.
The 2014-15 budget will give $800,000 to provide house calls to seniors with complex needs, and $1.5 million for a hotspotting program to identify and assist high-risk, high needs patients who may be repeatedly hospitalized.
Currently, one per cent of the Saskatchewan’s patients use 20 per cent of health care services.
To identify such patients, Duncan said the program will look at a their previous utilization of the emergency rooms, dialling of 911 and ambulance services. “In many cases, these are people with mental health and addiction issues. But if they don’t want to be a part of it, we’re aren’t going to force care on them,” he said.
However, Platzke said this might create a new problem. “It’s good that we are looking at the one per cent. But on the other hand the spotlight is now on them. I have mixed feelings on that. I don’t want to see individuals targeted unfairly,” she said.
