Wait list for home care in Ottawa shrinks significantly

The ChamplainLocal Health Integration Network (LHIN) says it has shaveditswait list for nursing helpand assistance withbathing and dressing at home by nearly three-quarters.

The reduction comesnearly fivemonths after the LHINtook overthe delivery of home and community care services in late Mayfrom the ChamplainCommunity Care Access Centre.

Last December, after damning provincial audits,the Ontario government dissolved all the community care access centres in the province and turned responsibility over to the LHINs.

In the Champlainregion, which includes Ottawa and a wide swath of Eastern Ontario,5,400 people were waiting for some type of home care service as of March 31, according to LHINdata.

As of the middle of October, that number was down to 1,443.

At the end of March, the average wait time for personal support services was two-and-a-half months;as of the third week of October,thatwait had beenwhittled down to sixdays.

Demand dropping

The significantdrop came earlier this year when the province added $14.8 million to the region's home care budget, according to the LHIN.

Chantal LeClerc, CEO of the ChamplainLHIN, saidpriority isgiven to those needing nursing services, but that over the last few months,staff made an effort to get services to those who had been waiting the longest.

As well,LeClercsaid something unexpectedhappened:fewer people have been calling toaskfor in-home care.

"We're not sure why the number of people coming forward is dropping," she said."If you know there is a long wait list, sometimes people don't bother calling for the service."

On average, a new client now wait about a week to receive the services of a personal support worker, according to the LIHIN,butin some rural areas the wait is much longer due to a shortage ofworkers. There are also shortages in psysiotherapists and occupational therapists.

Wait listwill continue to fluctuate

"Being on a wait list for this kind of service means you're hanging on and trying to make the most of it," LeClercsaid. "Your family may have to step in, which isn't always easy, and the default isif you're not able to manage at home,it's a call to 911 and then you're in the hospital."

Heather Duffhelps coordinate care for clients at the Champalin LHIN, aposition she held previously with the ChamplainCCAC. She alsochairs CUPE Ontario's health care workers sector.

She'spleased to see the decrease in the wait listbut addedthe cycle of wait lists growing and lessening will only continue.

Duff argues somepeople who have dropped off the wait list may have gone into long-term care, died, decided topayfor home care, or are more likely being cared for byfamily members who are burning out.

"I would caution that the underlying issue is that you've heard that you're not going to get the service because it's going to take six to eight months, then you'll probably go and look forthe service elsewhere," Duff said.