OPSEU provides expert and first-person opinion on fixing crisis in long term care

TORONTO, June 18, 2020 /CNW/ - OPSEU has presented Premier Doug Ford with key and vital recommendations from the front lines on how to fix the crisis in long term care, including hiring more inspectors and taking for-profit operators out of the picture.

OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas went to front-line long-term care home inspectors who are OPSEU members to get their thoughts on the problems and solutions to fix them.

"The Premier asked for the thoughts of front-line workers and that is what he is getting," said Thomas. "The answers are in this submission and Ontarians will be well served if he follows the sound advice in this document."

There is a long history, several governments in the making, of the erosion of long-term care inspections, and OPSEU has sounded the alarm every step of the way.

In the submission sent to Ford on Thursday, OPSEU offered a dozen sensible and achievable solutions to the disaster in long-term care.   They include beefing up the number of inspectors, better oversight of the ministry managers who review inspection reports and eliminating privately run facilities.

OPSEU First Vice-President/Treasurer Eduardo (Eddy) Almeida says these constructive ideas will go a long way to putting long-term care in Ontario on sound footing.

"The inspectors who OPSEU represents are dedicated and passionate about the essential work they perform, and to the people they are serving," said Almeida. "They've been sounding the alarm for years about the problems and they know better than anyone what the solutions are."

Thomas would like to have a conversation with the Premier in the coming days to discuss the submission and how to act on it.

"I know the Premier genuinely wants to fix this mess," said Thomas. "I want to help him do that and so do all of OPSEU's front-line members who are involved in long-term care." 

Read the entire submission here. 

SOURCE Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU)