Councillor McCann Meeting Report (March 1, 2016)

Belvedere Heights Monthly Board Meeting
On Wednesday, February 24th, I attended the Belvedere Heights Monthly Board meeting.  Some interesting facts to pass along to you; Belvedere has 179 volunteers servicing the home and the community.  There are 100 volunteers servicing the long term care in the program department, and that's over 5,000 hours a year including support of the operation of the tuck shop.  As well, 79 volunteers service the community delivering meals and providing volunteer transportation.  THANK YOU TO EACH AND EVERY VOLUNTEER!  You do make a difference.

There has been some funding provided by LHIN (Local Health Integration Network) in the amount of $5,760 in base funding for Community Support Services administrative costs associated with the ministry funded exercise programs.  This is a separately funded program managed by CSS.

The Accessible Van
By chance I had an opportunity to see the new accessible van this past Sunday, both the interior and exterior.  I had the opportunity to see it in operation. It is a beautiful vehicle, very modern... you can stand tall in this van with plenty of headroom.  This is a great investment and asset and again, we need to thank the volunteers who make this community service really what it is.








West Parry Sound Refuge Program
In a recent news article Steven Duff reminded us that some years ago TV Ontario rated Parry Sound as the second most talented town in Ontario... and he went on to speculate, that now, we must rank as one of the most generous.  We have seen this over and over, through fund drive initiatives, radio-thons, etc.  It never ceases to amaze me how generous the people of this town are.  They have again stepped up to the plate to help two groups working to settle refugee families in our area.

Through the Meeting House, there is a group managing what is referred to as Blended Sponsorship program in partnership with the government.  They have raised 80% of the required funds and the government will top it off to make it somewhere in the $30,000 range.  A recent bake sale at the Scotiabank brought in $1,600 and the bank matched that amount.  They are now at the point where they can apply for a family profile.

The West Parry Sound Refuge Program has been successful in that it now has a family of five scheduled to move here in a couple of months.  We want to thank the folks at Georgian Lanes for hosting a most successful fund raiser last Saturday!  A number of initiatives including bowling, of course, and a bake sale, brought in a total of $1,542.95!  A big thank you to everyone in the area for such generous support of these programs!


SPEAKING TO THE CONCERNS OF THE MANITOULIN LODGE NURSING HOME
A Call to the Government for More Funding in a Time of Great Need

I once read a quote somewhere.... "Everyone wants to live a long time, but no one wants to get old!"  Truly a conundrum!

This resolution speaks to the growing difficulty and frustration over the ever increasing costs of meeting compliance standards for nursing home care and management as set by the province.  While the province sets the standards, it leaves the responsibility of the costs to the home itself.  The administrator of the Manitoulin Lodge Nursing Home in Gore Bay had this to say, and I quote, "Resident population in long-term care has changed significantly over the last five years.  With the success of the province's 'Aging in Place' strategy, seniors are now entering our home with high or very high care needs.  They are older, more frail and in need of more medical and personal care.  Unfortunately, long-term care funding has not kept pace with the growing acuity of these residents."

So, the needs are changing and continue to present a real sense of very immediate and serious urgency.   It's important to keep in mind that we want to maintain whatever services Belvedere is offering.  In this day and age, if a service is discontinued or lost, we are surely not likely to see it return.  As I quoted, the Manitoulin Lodge Nursing Home reports, and their situation is not unlike any other such home including Belvedere, seniors entering a home for Long Term Care are older, more frail and present with higher care needs.  Funding is based on the previous year's needs, and so it is as if we are always one year behind.

Funding formulas also provide dollars to assess and manage immediate needs, perhaps a wound from a fall, dementia and depression, behavioural issues, but at the end of the day, funding falls short for daily living and basic care.   There is no money for preventative initiatives and no money for support and training such as is needed for behavioural issues.  Management of Belvedere is working however on saving where it can and still maintain compliance.  For instance we have hired a consultant to help us with energy efficiency!

The Local Health Integration Network (commonly referred to as the LHIN) tends to look for larger populated areas in which to invest and so again, it is a struggle to get sufficient funds needed.

This motion out of Manitoulin is simply asking the province to step up to the plate rather than leave such a huge onus on the municipality.