Seniors air concerns to MLA

DAVID F. ROONEY
Revelstoke Times Review

February 6 2008

Local seniors unburdened themselves of their concerns to New Democratic MLA Norm Macdonald last week.

“The care of children and the care of seniors are the most important things in our community, - and not just here, all British Columbians will tell you that,” he said as he met with about 40 people at the Seniors’ Centre last Thursday.

“Yet so many seniors are still feeling like the services they need are not available when they need them; that they are falling through the cracks in the system.”

Macdonald told local seniors that he wants to take their concerns back to Victoria where the NDP has brought forward two pieces of legislation to address gaps in the current system: the Representative for Seniors Act and the Community Care and Assisted Living Amendment Act.

He told Revelstoke’s seniors that having an independent office of the Legislature responsible for overseeing and protecting the rights of seniors would ensure that seniors have a strong voice and ‘an advocate to push government to address their issues.’

As for amending the current legislation for community care and assisted living facilities, that ‘would force service providers to be accountable through random inspections and public reporting.”

Seniors didn’t have a lot to say openly about their concerns but most of those present filled out surveys and spoke in confidence to Macdonald and the two staff members he brought with him.  But that doesn’t mean they were silent

Most of the issues raised publicly were related to access to health care – particularly health care out of town.

“People who need to see specialists have to go out of town and they can’t always arrange appointments to coincide with the days that the medical shuttle bus runs,” said Paul Salva.  “We need a way to deal with barriers like this.”

Doug Hamilton raised a related issue, asking that Macdonald press the BC Cancer Agency to bring chemotherapy treatments back to Revelstoke.

Chemo had been offered here several years ago but was discontinued because the agency believed the town’s population would not support it, Hamilton said.

“The stress of driving out of town to get the treatment is worse than the actual chemo itself,” he said, alluding to the often difficult reactions cancer patients have to chemotherapy.

That stress is particularly difficult in winter, Hamilton said.

Macdonald assured everyone at the forum that their individual responses to the survey and their personal concerns, as told to him and his staff, would remain confidential.

Anyone who wants to share their worries about the way seniors are treated in Revelstoke in particular and the province in general can contact Laura Christie, at Macdonald’s Community Office at 416 West 1st Street.  She can be reached by phone at 814 – 6700.