$500 million for seniors in British Columbia

Health Minister Terry Lake said the government will spend $500 million over the next four years to improve care for seniors, setting a target to average 3.36 direct-care hours daily to seniors in publicly funded private and non-profit residential care homes. This funding announcement is a pivotal moment for seniors and their families in British Columbia.

Menno Place is grateful for the opportunity to participate in bringing attention to the need for increased funding in the long term care sector. Karen Baillie, CEO of Menno Place, is the President of the BC Care Providers. The BC Care Providers was established 40 years ago and represents over 70% of the care providers for seniors in British Columbia (bccare.ca).

Working alongside Daniel Fontaine, the CEO of BC Care Providers, Karen Baillie was an integral member of the team that worked with our politicians to bring awareness of the funding needs of seniors’ care.

The Province will spearhead a number of other measures to improve supports for seniors, such as additional home-support services and hours, increased home-health monitoring, training for staff and funds for quality of life. The Province has also entrusted $10 million to the BC Care Providers Association to allocate to publicly funded care homes to purchase new equipment such as wheelchairs and patient lifts to help people with limited mobility, and falls prevention equipment inlcuding hand rails and alarms for beds to protect seniors at high risk of injury from a fall.

Karen Baillie was elected to the board of BC Care Providers in January, 2016. “It’s great to have someone with Karen’s experience and background take over,” says Elaine Price, Past – President of the BCCPA. “Under her leadership our organization is poised to build even further on the incredible momentum we have generated over the last few years.”

“This is an exciting time to be part of the vision for seniors care in our province,” said Karen L. Baillie. “We are reaping the benefits of working together with politicians and stakeholders who understand what is needed as our population of seniors continues to grow. I am grateful for the opportunity to work together with BC Care Providers to draw attention to seniors’ needs and to work on behalf of more than 300 member organizations who provide care for more than 16,000 seniors in our province. This funding is a historic decision. I’ve worked the majority of my career with seniors for over 35 years and never seen this level of commitment in such practical terms. We are grateful for what will become possible through this $500 million funding commitment.”