Long-term care needs an overhaul

The COVID-19 pandemic has shown we can no longer afford to ignore the long-standing issues with long-term care and home care.

More than 70 per cent of COVID-19 deaths in Canada occurred in longterm care facilities, the highest proportion — by a long shot — among the 14 developed countries that track this data.

Reports from the Canadian Armed Forces detailed the tragic conditions in our longterm care homes, conditions made worse by COVID-19 but that sounded all too familiar to those with experience with long-term care.

Add to this that Canadians are living longer and more of us are dealing with chronic conditions and diseases, especially as we age.

By the end of this decade, those 65 and older will make up almost one-quarter of the population.

The demand on the healthcare system is only going to increase.

Our health-care system has not kept pace with Canada's aging population.

It is time we included older adult care in our national health framework and start managing, funding and regulating long-term and home care in the same way as other parts of our system: with national standards tied to funding.

National standards would guarantee a standard level of quality care, the availability of equitable and consistent services across the country, and adequate levels of funding for these types of care.

All levels of government must resolve to work together to fix long-term and home care and ensure older adults can access the care they need. Angie Todesco, Ottawa