A lawyer is seeking an independent investigation into the quality of services at a Saint-Lambert seniors’ residence after two former caregivers were arrested and charged with abuse.
Attorney Jean-Pierre Menard said Wednesday he wants Quebec’s health ministry to research repeated complaints about the care given at Residence Saint-Lambert sur-le-Golf.
Menard, who is representing several families, said complaints have been coming in steadily ever since the residence opened three years ago.
Louis Plamondon, president of the Quebec Association for the Defense of Retired and Pre-Retired Peoples' Rights, and Guy Laurion, vice president of Federation of Health and Human Services– CSN spoke out Wednesday, calling the situation alarming.
Menard said the complaints are about the quality of basic care. When it comes to hygiene, for example, families claim their loved ones are left sitting in soiled diapers for long periods of time.
Last month, Immacula Eugene and Marie-Margaret Petime were arrested, after allegedly assaulting residents, poisoning two of them, and stealing medications.
The Monteregie Health and Social Services Agency launched an investigation after the arrests, but Menard is calling that into question, saying the agency isn't neutral.
The home is operated by the Groupe Savoie, and it's the first nursing home built under a public-private partnership.
Menard said it's a business model that has clearly failed, and isn't in the best interests of these elderly patients, which is why his clients are calling on the government to cancel the public-private partnership.
"This model is very simple. A minimum of employees, a minimum of training, a minimum of supervision, you will have a below minimum level of services. It’s very, very simple. It is the cheapest way to provide services," he said.
They also want the health ministry to launch an independent investigation, and they don't want any new patients admitted to the Saint-Lambert facility.
The Monteregie Health and Social Services Agency issued a statement late Wednesday afternoon, saying it wanted to reassure the public their investigation is independent.
The investigator is Andre Ducharme, a former director general of Maisonneuve Rosemont Hospital and the Montreal Institute of Cardiology.
Ducharme has 35 years of experience in the healthcare system, someone the agency said has a lot of credibility. He will issue a report in the weeks to come.
