Once the Ministry of Long-Term Care completes its inspection of the Leacock Care Centre in Orillia, a report will be made public, provincial officials say.
The long-term care home came under fire last week after resident Dav Langstroth was left in his own excrement overnight on May 22, an incident he called “dehumanizing” and damaging both mentally and physically.
The incident prompted the provincial government to announce an inspection of the “unacceptable” conditions Langstroth described in the home.
There is no timeline for the inspection, but provincial officials say they will take as much time as necessary.
“All homes are expected to meet our care standards set out in the Fixing Long-Term Care Act,” said Jake Roseman, issues manager and press secretary for Paul Calandra, minister of long-term care.
“Ministry inspectors may spend one or more weeks — as long as necessary — investigating the home until they have a clear understanding of whether or not the home is in compliance. There is no excuse for homes that fail to provide enough care for residents.”
Roseman said the government is working to increase care capacity in long-term care homes over the next few years.
“Our government is incrementally increasing levels of care year over year, setting annual targets, culminating in an average of four hours of direct care per resident per day by 2025 — a Canadian-leading standard,” he said. “In March, the Ministry of Long-Term Care provided its first status update, noting it was successful in achieving its 2021-22 implementation target.”
Langstroth said he has been visited by numerous administrative staff, dietitians and others in the days following the incident. However, he is disappointed it took a situation like that to bring attention to the needs of long-term care residents.
“I’m not saying anything derogatory of the administration. They’ve been going along and doing their business and doing their job,” he told OrilliaMatters. “Now, all of a sudden, there’s a spotlight on something that’s not right, so they’re trying to do damage control over anything else.”
He is also concerned the inspection will not provide a clear image of how the home operates.
“They’ll have all their ducks in a row; they’ll have all their staffing issues cleared up,” he said.
Langstroth also said he had to wait one hour to be changed on the night of May 31.
Roseman said the province’s report will be made available here.
Representatives of Jarlette, the owner of the for-profit home, declined to comment.
