London support worker asks how her next MPP will fix the support worker 'crisis'?
Workers often leave home care jobs for higher paying positions in hospitals, LTC homes
Jennifer House loves her job, but wishes there were fewer factors that could one day tempt her to leave.
As a support worker providing care in a London, Ont., home for adults with behavioural challenges, the 27-year-old makes meals for the people she cares for and helps them with daily activities, everything from doing crafts to taking a bath to getting out to the park.
"I adore my job," she said. "These guys are special to my heart. I love that I get to hang out with them all day and make them smile and laugh. It's important to me because I feel like the general population kind of forgets about people in this setting unfortunately."
As a part-time support worker, House makes about $5 an hour less than most workers doing similar jobs in a long-term care setting or in hospitals. Her shifts also often change and her hours aren't consistent.
She's seen colleagues start their jobs and be trained, then leave for more pay. With inflation pushing up the cost of living, House fears she may have to make a similar decision.
House says she'll be watching the campaign unfold, with an eye to parties with a workable plan to stabilize the staffing problem.
"I will be casting a vote for someone who cares about the careers that are being overlooked right now."
A system 'in crisis'
Support worker turnover has led to big challenges in health care in recent years, with problems such as burnout and staffing shortages further exposed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Home care is in crisis," said Sue VanderBent, CEO of Home Care Ontario, which represents 70 organizations across the province — both public and private — providing all sorts of home care, including care that helps seniors stay longer in their homes.
"Before COVID, we were meeting patient referrals about 96 per cent of the time," she said. "Now it's down to 40 per cent and that's because of staffing. We've got to bring people back into the home care system."
VanderBent's organization published a report in October 2020 about the staffing issue. Its top recommendation was to bring in pay equity for support workers so they earn the same as staff doing the same job in more institutional settings.
"We definitely need to see the funding increase, that's the most critical issue that we have right now," she said. VanderBent estimates it would take about $460 million a year for the province to begin to plug that pay gap.
She sees it as good value because caring for people where they live, whether it's seniors, people with disabilities or those recovering from surgeries, costs less than a hospital bed. In her view, it also offers better quality of care. VanderBent said the staffing problem will be particularly pressing as Ontario faces the "silver tsunami" of an aging population.
Despite the challenges, VanderBent said the issue is very much on the radar of parties running in this election
"I've never in my whole career seen this much attention and use of the word 'home care,'" she said of the campaign's early days. "[Candidates] are hearing it at the door."
Where parties stand
The Liberals vow to put an end to for-profit long-term care by 2028. They also promise to put $2 billion more into the home care system by 2026. Also in their plan: To build 15,000 more assisted living home spaces over the net decade.
They Liberals also promise to boost total base funding for the system by $2 billion by 2026 through 10 per cent annual increases.
Kate Graham is running for the Liberals in London North Centre.
"If PSWs are not valued, not paid what they deserve, we shouldn't be surprised to see the challenges that we're running into right now," she said. Graham said the Liberals will announce a more detailed and fully costed plan for home care and long-term care later this week.
In their platform, the NDP say they will set a standard for home and community care services by identifying a "basket" of core services clients are entitled to receive, such as help preparing meals and managing medication.
Terrance Kernaghan is seeking re-election for the NDP, also in London North Centre.
His party plans to phase out for-profit care providers and give PSWs a $5 an hour raise.
Kernaghan said past PC and Liberal governments have underfunded the system.
"At the root of this is a lack of government funding and a lack of government attention," he said.
However, Kernaghan also couldn't provide estimates of how much it will cost to implement the NDP's plan.
CBC News was unable to connect with the PC's Jerry Pribil, who is running against Kernaghan and Graham in London North Centre.
The PCs have yet to release their full platform, but last month pledged $1 billion to support home care services.
In October, the province brought in a $3 an hour pay increase for PSWs in response to the pandemic.
Then in April, the government made that emergency pay increase permanent as part of the Emergency Preparedness Act.
Before the increase, the base rate for a PSW in Ontario was $16.50 per hour.
Unions have called the move a good start that falls short of providing more long-term, permanent solutions to stabilizing a field with high-turnover that hinders the quality of care.