(Quebec) Faced with the outcry caused by a dizzying increase in rent, which could reach 30 to 50%, the owner of the CHSLD Domaine Saint-Dominique, in Quebec, suspends his decision while finding “a way through” with the CIUSSS of the Capitale-Nationale.
The president of the CHSLD Domaine Saint-Dominique, Patrick Gilbert, confirmed on Friday that he was suspending his decision to increase the rents, which he explains because of the new orientations of the Legault government. Mr. Gilbert says he agreed to do so after discussions with the CIUSSS de la Capitale-Nationale and the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MSSS).
The Press reported Friday that families of seniors housed in this private CHSLD are “scandalized” by announced rent increases of 30 to 50%, which will make them pay up to $97,000 per year.
“I proposed a moratorium. I don’t want to be in the same place in two or three weeks. I gave them the chance to find a way through,” explained Gilbert. In return, he hopes to obtain financial support from the public network while the government converts private CHSLDs into approved establishments, that is to say subsidized for their activities.
“My demands from the beginning are that I am ready to function without profit while we [fasse le projet de conventionnement], but I can’t be negative. I understand the residents, I saw the same thing on my side. It is not a model that holds. I am not a public institution, I cannot record losses like this indefinitely, ”he told The Press Friday.
Feedback will be paid to families who have seen their rates explode on 1er April, the date on which the increases take effect, explained Mr. Gilbert “We are in contact with the families. We are also in contact with the users’ committee,” he added. A total of 64 of the 179 permanent residents (those whose lease is renewed between 1er April and the 1er August 2023) were affected by these increases.
According to Mr. Gilbert, obtaining the status of registered establishment “results in a significant increase in the supply of care” which “supposes a significant addition of resources, human and material, throughout the residence”. “And these additions, as long as our establishment is not officially contracted, are not supported or absorbed by the ministry”, he wrote Thursday.
Mr. Gilbert’s explanations “jumped” the Minister for Health and Seniors, Sonia Bélanger. “There is no question that the process of agreement is assumed by the elders”, she assured Thursday to The Press. The minister reiterated on Twitter on Friday that “the rent increase sent to several residents under the agreement is completely unacceptable! »
To be approved, and therefore subsidized by the State, the establishment must “reach a certain level of standards” in terms of quality of services, underlines the minister. Quebec can offer support, but there are no amounts allocated to allow them to reach these new standards.
The CHSLD Domaine Saint-Dominique has been facing an average monthly deficit of approximately $245,000 since October. The establishment has also been under the supervision of the CIUSSS de la Capitale-Nationale since the fall due to “significant and worrying shortcomings relating to the quality of care and services to residents”, underlines the MSSS. Although the “efforts since [aient] significantly improve the quality of the living environment”, the guardianship is maintained until September 2023.
According to the latest Girard budget, Quebec has given itself five years to agree on the quarantine of private CHSLDs with the aim of “harmonizing the supply of care” between the public and the private sector. The pandemic has revealed disparities between the two categories of establishments. The Legault government would have “significantly progressed” in the agreement of 16 CHSLDs, it is indicated in the budget document.
With Alice Girard-Bossé