Orchard Villa is where Diane Colangelo’s 86-year-old mother, Patricia, arrived 48 kilograms (105 lbs) and died at 31 kilograms (68 lbs). Paul William Russell Parkes also died there claiming that her daughter Cathy was severely dehydrated. Andrew Watt’s mother, Nina, died just weeks after arriving at the for-profit facility. Watt explained that she was so emaciated that Nina looked like a concentration camp victim.

At a privately owned and operated for-profit long-term care (LTC) facility in Pickering, Ontario, more than 70 residents died early in the COVID-19 pandemic.

206 of the 233 residents and over 100 staff have contracted COVID-19.

Troops were deployed, but much of what they reported was not a situation caused by the pandemic. I reported the problem.

A member of the military found the occupant lying on an exposed mattress on the floor. Others were left in soiled diapers for too long. The stench of rotten food in the hallways. cockroach and fly infestation; poorly trained staff;

For years, the family reported misery under staffing and poor management.

In fact, families who testified before the COVID-19 Long-Term Care Commission regularly detailed dangerously understaffed levels that led to chronic neglect of their residents. .

They also explained that they called repeatedly during the pandemic lockdown, but because they didn’t have enough staff, no one answered the call.

One family with no phone line went to Orchard Villa to see their mother through the window. They saw their mother vomiting in the room and had to bang on the window until staff came to help. She died a few days later.

Eventually, a local hospital took over control of the house. The remaining residents were taken to hospital and found to be severely dehydrated, anorexic, and partially renal failure. A spokesperson for the hospital reported that only 20% of the required staff was on duty at home.

Orchard Villas is owned by Southbridge, but Southbridge does not actually operate a long-term care facility. Instead. They outsource their care to Extendicare, another for-profit company. Ultimately, Southbridge and Extended Care benefit from public funds and resident fees, but their level of care is under intense scrutiny.

Still, there is no accountability for these business owners, who have one of the worst death rates in Ontario. They were never fined. They never lost their license. There was no accountability for the suffering and death of residents, or ongoing trauma to families.

Instead, in the fall of 2020, the Ford government passed legislation to protect Orchard Villas and other for-profit LTC home operators from negligence lawsuits. Families that sue for negligence must sue for gross negligence, with a higher burden of proof.

Natalie Mehra, Executive Director of the Ontario Health Coalition (OHC) said: What happened at Orchard’s villa should never have been allowed. But if it had been done, it should have brought about the calculation of real change and real accountability. Instead, the owner is being rewarded. ”

On July 15, 2021, the Department of Long-Term Care held a public conference call on the proposed new 30-year license and bed extensions for Orchard Villas. Despite a record number of delegations, the ministry restricted participants from asking questions and prevented them from commenting on the company’s poor record.

The OHC filed a formal complaint and sent an open letter to Long-Term Care Minister Paul Calandra to initiate a new fair process, including a review of the evidence on whether Southbridge was fit to operate a nursing home for 30 years. I asked. The OHC also asked the Department to consider standards including operational performance for legal entities operating LTC homes, as required under the Long Term Care Homes Act.

As a result, the ministry was required to restart the Orchard Villa consultation process, which is currently underway.

This time, the LTC Department is only accepting paper submissions with the incredibly short deadline of Wednesday, October 19th. In fact, there will be no hearings at all.

It is imperative that the LTC Department listens to the people of Ontario. There are two ways to provide written feedback on a consultation:

1. e-mail [email protected]
2. canada post mail

subordinate director 2021 Amendment to the Nursing Care Act
Ministry of Nursing
capital planning branch
438 University Ave, 8^th floor
Toronto, Ontario M5G 2K8

Be sure to include the name of the long-term care facility — Orchard Villas — and cite Project #23-034 on all submissions.

Mehra told the people of Ontario, “We cannot treat the lives of the elderly as disposable. We must not allow profit and greed to trump basic human rights and duties of care and compassion. can and must stop these plans, otherwise what kind of society would we be?”

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