By Ephrem Gallant, North Bay.
Before the reconstruction of the 240 LTC bed Cassellholme facility begins it should be clear to all that 24 new LTC beds are inadequate.
Waiting lists for LTC in Ontario (Ontario Long Term Care Association -2018) are generally experiencing a 15% growth per year. Even if we make allowances for living in a Northern Ontario community with a shrinking (aging) population we still are looking at a double-digit growth per year.
The current LTC waiting list for Cassellholme is 195 people. If, our MPP follows through with his election promise and this 64M dollar construction project is completed, that’s still four years from today.
Based on the expected exponential growth for required LTC, I ask that our municipal authorities request the MOHLTC to include more LTC beds within the Cassellholme reconstruction plan. If this is not possible, our City should initiate plans for a “new” facility to look after its LTC needs.
Many of our recently elected City Council ran on platforms to support Cassellholme and LTC. I urge them to ask questions, examine the projections, read the files and please do the right thing.
No one wishes to see yesterday’s plan, built for tomorrow.
Ephrem Gallant, North Bay
