Broken promises? B.C. care homes call on province for help after losing staff to vaccine mandates
The care of seniors is already being hurt by the loss of nearly 2,000 B.C. workers in assisted living and long-term care due to vaccine mandates.
"They're getting less care," said Karen Biggs, CEO of Menno Place in Abbotsford.
"So if you get a bath twice a week, maybe you get it once a week (now). If you get up twice a day, maybe you'll get up once a day," she said.
Menno Place has lost seven regular staff and 19 casuals who quit after the province made COVID-19 vaccination a requirement in care facilities. Biggs says that's in addition to the 39 casuals she lost after the single site order was implemented.
"We have stopped new admissions as of yesterday," said Biggs.
"Right now, one of our units has seven empty beds. We're holding those beds empty," she explained.
Health Minister Adrian Dix said Tuesday that "the province is working with health authorities and operators on a home-by-home basis to ensure that... contingency plans are in place to ensure residents continue to get the care they need."
But some operators say that is not happening, and feel the province's promises have been broken.
"I put in to the health authorities for five extra LPNs and I got two. I put in for six extra care aids and I got two," said Biggs.
Still, she may have been one of the lucky operators.
Hendrik Van Ryk, the vice-president of human resources at H and H Total Care Services, says his company has lost staff at its Penticton and Kamloops locations.
He says when the company reached out to Interior Health, the health authority said it wouldn't be able to send any workers.
He calls it a "crisis" situation.
CTV News contacted Interior Health but it did not respond. Fraser Health told CTV to contact the Ministry of Health for information.
In a statement, the Ministry of Health says, “Health authorities report that existing contingency plans are ensuring residents receive the care they need. Contingency plans for periods of low staffing include a number of options including offering staff additional shifts (including overtime) and re-deploying staff from other areas.”
The Ministry points out that “…as of October 11, in all of B.C., 96 per cent of long-term care staff have received a first dose, and 93 per cent have received a second dose.”
Meanwhile, workers say they are feeling the stress of staffing shortages.
"Just burnout. Fatigue and burnout," explained Dale Carlisle, who works as a rehabilitation assistant at Menno Home.
"Sometimes a person might work overtime but now they're having to work multiple days' overtime," he said.
Biggs believes the health authorities are just as short-staffed as the care homes are.
She likens the situation to a pressure cooker that's about to blow
"At this point, we've got the cork on the pressure cooker but we just don't how much more that our staff can handle...and quite honestly, i don't know how much more my leadership team can handle."
She says she's especially concerned because staff are being asked to manage the situation in the midst of facing COVID-19 outbreaks in facilities.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
U.S. Senate passes bill forcing TikTok's parent company to sell or face ban, sends to Biden for signature
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
Wildfire southwest of Peace River spurs evacuation order
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan with big bipartisan vote
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.