For
Immediate Release
May 31, 2006
Minister promises RRC’s level of services
and care will continue in group homes
In his question Mr. Sterling
spoke about the concerns of one parent whose 42-year-old son lives at RRC.
“This father knows what kind of care his son requires and he hasn’t
been able to get any assurance from the Ministry that after his son is moved out
of the Centre he will receive the care he needs, not to mention the exercise and
social interaction that he enjoys at RRC.”
This resident, who has a mental
age of less than three-years-old and who doesn’t talk or respond to direction,
is 6 feet tall and strong enough that it takes a minimum of two trained
care-givers to restrain him when necessary so that he doesn’t hurt himself or
anyone else. At the Rideau Regional
Centre he has not only all the medical, psychological and physical services he
needs but he access to pool and gym as well as social programs tailored for the
residents and a safe environment where he can wander the halls without putting
himself in danger.
Minister Meilleur responded by
saying she wanted to assure Mr. Sterling and the families of these residents
that the services that residents of the regional centres rely on will be made
available once those individuals are moved out of the centres and into group
homes. While the Minister did make
this promise, she did not offer any specifics about how such services would be
provided.
“Families want to ensure that
their loved one will receive the same care and services once they are moved out
of RRC as they have long received in the Centre, and they don’t believe that
can be achieved in a group home setting,” said Mr. Sterling.
“If this Minister can deliver on the promise she made today, I am
pleased for the families of these residents, and I plan to do everything I can
to ensure she keeps this promise. However,
I feel I must remind these families that, as we’ve seen over the past
two-and-a-half years, we can’t always trust the word of the McGuinty
Government.”
On May 23, the Minister finally
announced funding for new group homes to house the residents of the three
remaining regional centres. This
announcement failed to include any plan to provide for the provision of medical,
psychological or emotional services to these residents who are among
“This government’s stubborn
determination to close these facilities without first establishing the services
in the community, or even publishing how it plans to do so, is irresponsible,”
said Mr. Sterling. “Unfortunately
this is not surprising since pushing forward without a plan is becoming the
hallmark of the McGuinty Government, almost as much as its broken promises.”
Rideau Regional Centre, Huronia
Regional Centre and Southwestern Regional Centre house approximately 1,000 of
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For more information, please call Lanark-Carleton MPP Norm Sterling at: (416) 314-7900