The Real Reason There Are No Long Waits for Care

In the Vancouver Sun today, there was an article in which Clay Adams, Director of issues management for the Vancouver Coastal Health authority told the reporter that "there is no longer a long waiting list for residential care beds, so the health authority is focussing on assisted living, which is in greater demand (Quotes are re the article)"

Well, Mr. Clay the reason there are no long waiting lists is because the government made a policy that anyone who wants to go into a nursing home and manages to qualify must be willing to go in within three months. So of course there are no long waitlists.

Once people agrees to go into care, they are only allowed to choose a preference. If their preference is not available, they have to go to the first bed that is available, which can mean a long trek across the city for an elderly spouse who wants to go visit.

So if you want to go to one specific place, you may be out of luck. The committee responsible for placement will do their best to get you in where you wish, but if they can't they don't.

And woe to you if you are going to be discharged from hospital. With the pressure to get you out of hospital (where you will become a "bed-blocker"), there is even less latitude for you to go where you or your family, wants you to go.

Once the hospital says you are ready for discharge, you can be out the next day. Or when a bed comes up somewhere, you are gone as soon as it is ready. No preparation, no planning for you.

That includes discharging you if you are palliative, no matter what kind of room is available. I would think that somewhere there would be at least the compassion to find someone who is dying a single room. Silly me for thinking compassion could be a higher priotity than numbers.

By the way, there is something called relocation trauma. It means that elderly people especially are at risk when they are moved. At risk for death. Adequate preparation can help mitigate the risk.