Representatives of New Brunswick nursing homes want an additional hour of care per resident by 2031. Justin Wies, CEO of the New Brunswick Association of Nursing Homes, said currently care is rushed, patients have to wait for necessary needs like bathroom support and baths for many residents are limited to once a week. But if the province increases the current hours of care from 3.09 to 4.1, spread out over five years, he believes that would improve. “Rushed care does not meet the social, emotional, mental needs of our residents,” Wies said at a news conference on Wednesday. “Proper care, dignity, respect for seniors. That’s what we get with 4.1 hours of care.” In the last provincial budget, the government allotted $2.6 million to increase the current hours of care. But Wies said that will add up to six additional minutes, half of his recommended increase for the year and far from the additional hour of care he’s asking for. “I think this is something that has to happen. It has to,” he said. “It’s not about any individual KPI, it’s about the fundamentals of care.” Marilyn Coates, executive director of Jordan LifeCare Centre Inc. in Moncton, said the needs of residents have increased in the last few years because people remain home longer before moving into care. In at least one case, that means most of a resident’s care hours are spent feeding him. “The care is given but the social interaction is so missing because everything is done rushed, because residents need so much more than they did even five years ago,” Coates said. Seniors’ advocate Cecile Cassista is joining the calls for change and wants more urgency from the provincial government. “When we sit with the stats of 178,000 seniors in the province of New Brunswick, with that number growing, I think that this government needs to set that as a priority,” she said. Minister of Seniors Lyne Chantal Boudreau did not provide CTV News with an interview by deadline, but in a statement she said she’s working with the association to address staffing needs as the province works towards increasing care hours. “Our goal is to optimize our staffing models so clinical teams can dedicate the necessary hours to providing high-quality care to residents,” she said. She also said nursing homes can request additional hours of care to address specific residents’ needs. For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
