Letting seniors make choices for themselves was a key theme when B.C.’s Seniors Advocate made a stop in Penticton for a town hall meeting.
Isobel Mackenzie answered questions from local seniors and senior care workers with access to information and ageism being two major themes discussed.
The issue of Nancy Varcoe, a woman held against her will for two and a half years in Penticton under the Mental Health Act (Penticton Western News, April 17, Page 1), was raised during the meeting at the Shatford Centre on April 22.
“It’s ageism,” Mackenzie said.
She related the situation to when she was new to the Vancouver area she would often take East Hastings Street in her travels.
“One of the things that occurred to me as I was driving in my multiple trips was how none of those people were sections. They weren’t seniors. They were clearly living at risk, they clearly had issues, but nobody was swooping in with the mental health act and locking them up,” Mackenzie said.
“If you move it forward suddenly that same population or those same behaviours, or even not as outrageous, and the person’s not 85 years old, we section them because we’ve said you can engage in risky behaviour and risky lifestyles and risky this and risky that as long as you’re not old.”
Another issue that was raised was that half of seniors in B.C. have a median income of $24,000 or less a year. Many of whom have trouble getting access to relevant information, information that becomes more crucial the lower the income.
Mackenzie said some seniors will pay Medical Service Plan taxes that are unnecessary and there are many programs that could help seniors if not for the lack of awareness.
“Clearly seniors aren’t getting just core information that they need. Particularly low-income seniors and we’ve identified that and we’ve got some concrete evidence of that and we’re working with government to come up with a solution,” Mackenzie said.
While it’s not the core function of the Seniors Advocate office, Mackenzie said that the office, which is just a phone call away and will have a real person on the phone, will refer seniors to any relevant services should they call.
She said another part of the problem is coordinating services.
“We have chosen to specialize geriatric care and so the consequence of that is that a lot of people are involved. I don’t actually think that’s providing better or even best care for our seniors,” Mackenzie said.
She said 30 years ago nurses would deal with more of the issues then they do today, where referrals are made to occupational therapists and nutritionists and so on.
“The decisions have to be team based which means you’ve got to get the team together. Which delays, delays, delays. We’re doing it because we think we’re bringing all the expertise together, that’s why we’re doing it,” Mackenzie said.
“I think we need to step back and say this isn’t an athlete looking to rehabilitate back to peak performance. This is a 95 year old.”
Sharon Evans, a registered psychiatric nurse of 50 years and board president of the Schizophrenia Society was in attendance at the town hall meeting. She feels the Seniors Advocate and what it provides for seniors is long overdue.
“I feel that socially we haven’t listened to the families as well as we could have about the services that are needed. Particularly for adults who have dementia or other disorders that impair their decision-making capacity,” Evans said.
“We need to offer, for the facilities, the most sophisticated training for the staff who are doing the front line work.”
Those looking to call the Seniors Advocate office can do so at 1-877-952-3181 or contact the office online at www.seniorsadvocatebc.ca.