The B.C. Government and Service Employees’ Union (BCGEU) welcomes the first exhaustive examination of the state of seniors' care in our province by the Seniors' Advocate of B.C. - Monitoring Seniors' Services. The report paints a picture of a system that is headed in the wrong direction.

In general, the report shows that for our province's many seniors, services are barely keeping pace with the increasing needs of our aging population.

Despite stated provincial government policy shifts to increase resources to home and community care, the data show this is not the case. Three out of five health authorities are providing fewer hours of home support, while the seniors' population is growing in four out of five areas.

"This report validates what our members tell us – home support clients are not getting enough hours of care," states BCGEU treasurer Paul Finch. "The reduced funding for hours means less attention to each client, with the end result that seniors are suffering."

"We recognize this report as the first step in improving health outcomes for our seniors, and we applaud the work of the Seniors' Advocate," Finch added. "We'd like to see these issues addressed in next month's provincial budget."

The B.C. Government and Service Employees' Union represents thousands of health care assistants in home support and residential care throughout the province. 

To read the complete report, see the Seniors' Advocate website here. 

For more information or to arrange an interview: Carol Wood, Communications - 604-612-4333, [email protected]