The Ministry of Health and Social Services (MSSS) “has not assessed the future need for long -term housing for nearly 15 years” and, if supply does not improve, “seniors with significant loss of autonomy are not all will have public access.long -term care in the coming years or with adequate intensity of services, ”said Quebec Auditor General (AG) Guylaine Leclerc.
For more than 20 years, MSSS has known that the demand for long -term housing will not stop increasing, we can read in the report. However, for nearly 15 years, he did not make projections of this demand.
Furthermore, the MSSS did not take into account the actual need for long-term housing in its projections for 2005 and 2019. In doing so, Seniors with severe loss of autonomy waiting for a place in long -term residence as well as those with major neurocognitive disorders were not included in MSSS projections..
However, since the early 2000s, the department has reiterated its desire to restructure the supply of long -term care, to cope with Quebec’s aging population and the growing number of people living with dementia.
But from 2005 to 2019, MSSS chose not to increase the number of places in CHSLDs. In fact, this number dropped by about 15%can we read in the report.
And not because more is being done for home care, though, since 2003, the ministry says it should always be prioritized if that’s what seniors want. It reiterated this in its 2021 Accommodation and Long-Term Care and Services Policy and in several press releases.
As home care spending has risen since 2015, the AG has found that MSSS did not specify how it would restructure and fund long -term care for seniors with significant loss of autonomy in the context of the transition to home support.
Result: currently, the offer is not sufficient to meet the need for long -term care for seniors with significant loss of autonomy. The offer is particularly characterized by access problems and insufficient intensity of services. Notably, the number of people aged 70 and over waiting for a permanent place in long-term care accommodation increased between 2015 and 2020.
And this demand continues and will continue to increase, as financial projections [du] MSSS underestimates expected costs.
The AG estimates that it will require an additional investment of two billion dollars per year. The measures announced for home support, for example, offer an investment of $ 340 million over five years, between 2021 and 2026.
The 5 recommendations of the Auditor General
The VG establishes five recommendations for the MSSS regarding the needs of seniors with significant loss of autonomy for long -term care:
establish an accurate picture of future need, taking into account changes in the demographics and the state of health of these seniors;
adapt the supply and funding model to the context of the transition to home support;
develop, together with its partners, an action plan for planned changes in service offer and funding;
establish long -term forecasts of the levels of services offered;
inform the population of the challenges and suggested solutions.
The report ends with MSSS comments, which welcomes the report of the Auditor General of Québec and takes into account the five recommendations directed at him. In this sense, MSSS is of the opinion that it can make improvements regarding long -term care planning and services for seniors with significant loss of autonomy..
Source: Radio-Canada
