Monday, September 05, 2022

 

Seniors advocate wants BC to follow Ontario and make air conditioning standard in all residents’ rooms in long-term care

ADVOCATE PUSHES FOR A/C

B.C.’s seniors advocate wants this province to follow Ontario’s lead and make air conditioning in each resident’s room mandatory for long-term care homes.

Earlier this month, the Ontario government fined two nursing homes $1,100 for not complying with new regulations that required air conditioning in each resident’s room by June 22 of this year.

That province dedicated more than $61 million to help care homes install updated HVAC systems.

B.C. Seniors Advocate Isobel Mackenzie says if B.C. budgeted a similar amount per capita, it would work out to about $20 million.

“Number one, I think given what we know about the future, I do not believe it’s unreasonable that it be the standard in every resident’s room,” said Mackenzie. “The idea that you have to move them out of their room into common areas, I don’t believe is about dignified home-like care.”

Some care homes here in the Okanagan still don’t have air conditioning in each room. Last year during the heat dome and again this year, when temperatures spiked into the mid-30s, Castanet received complaints about seniors being moved into common areas to keep them cool.

Mackenzie notes that Ontario set an ambitious goal and, for the most part, met that goal.

She understands that it could take time to implement similar legislation in BC.

“What I am concerned about is we haven’t set it as the standard or the expectation. That’s what I’m more concerned about.

“We’re going to be building new beds, we’re going to be refurbishing some places. I would like to think when we do that, we set a standard that each room have individual air conditioning,” Mackenzie said.

She believes it's not unreasonable to make it a standard requirement in British Columbia, and especially here in the Southern Interior where the summers are so hot.

Castanet reached out to BC Ministry of Health about the issues. The ministry confirmed that the Community Care and Assisted Living Act states that a licensee must ensure that the temperature in each bedroom, bathroom and common room is safe and comfortable for a person who is carrying out the types of activities that would be reasonably expected in the ordinary use of the room. However, there is no requirement for mechanical air conditioning in each resident’s room.

In the wake of last year’s deadly heat dome, there has been a push to get A/C to seniors and the vulnerable living in private homes.

Mackenzie says that will be a much more difficult undertaking, but when it comes to long-term care, she has a message for the government.

“That we revise our requirements under licensing to align with the type of licensing regulations they’ve developed in Ontario requiring mechanical ventilation in all areas of the care home.

“It’s more dignified care and also from, if you want to think about an infection control perspective, how effective is it to crowd everybody into the one room that has air conditioning versus having air conditioning in each room.”

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