Quebec public services are becoming 'dehumanized' due to rise in demand: ombudsperson
Quebec's public services are becoming "dehumanized," the province's ombudsperson said in his annual report released Thursday, adding that a growing number of people are reaching out to his office to signal problems.
Marc-André Dowd's report highlights several examples of people receiving inadequate care across the health network in the 12 months leading to March 31.
One dying man who lived alone had lost the ability to clean up after his cat, whom he considered his companion. However, his local health clinic refused to include cleaning the animal's litter box in his care plan.
Considering the man's "solitude," as well as his attachment to his pet — and the fact he had requested medical assistance in dying — the man merited a different response, the report says. "Beyond a strict interpretation of the program, support should have been provided on humanitarian grounds."
In another example, Dowd describes staff at a long-term care home feeding residents “mechanically” and ignoring them while music blared in the background, despite Health Ministry guidelines directing staff to maintain eye contact with residents.
"Such a lack of communication, attention and consideration toward the residents of the (care home) is an example of the dehumanized care," Dowd writes, adding the case is emblematic of a "distressing loss of purpose" in the duties of workers employed in what are supposed to be places of care.
The report also describes instances during which health-care staff used measures to control patients that are unjustifiable.
For example, a man hospitalized in a geriatric unit, who was prone to aggressive behaviour and hallucinations, was tied to his wheelchair facing a wall for long periods of time. His relatives had agreed to the control measure, but the report says staff used it even when it was unnecessary. As well, the same man was supposed to be given anti-psychotic medication when experiencing aggressive behaviour or hallucinations but was instead given the drug to prevent him from making inappropriate comments.
The ombudsperson says his office received a record number of problems to investigate across the province's public services — 24,867 in 2023-24 compared with 22,053 the previous year. More than 300 of the requests are related to wrongdoing by public officials, which can range from misusing public funds to putting people's health at risk — a 25 per cent increase compared to previous year.
Dowd says his office investigated 13,358 cases between April 2023 and March of this year.
-This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canadian family stuck in Lebanon anxiously awaits flight options amid Israeli strikes
A Canadian man who is trapped in Lebanon with his family says they are anxiously waiting for seats on a flight out of the country, as a barrage of Israeli airstrikes continues.
Yazidi woman captured by ISIS rescued in Gaza after more than a decade in captivity
A 21-year-old Yazidi woman has been rescued from Gaza where she had been held captive by Hamas for years after being trafficked by ISIS.
Scientists looked at images from space to see how fast Antarctica is turning green. Here's what they found
Parts of icy Antarctica are turning green with plant life at an alarming rate as the region is gripped by extreme heat events, according to new research, sparking concerns about the changing landscape on this vast continent.
Suspect in shooting of Toronto cop was out on bail
A 21-year-old man who was charged with attempted murder in the shooting of a Toronto police officer this week was out on bail at the time of the alleged offence, court documents obtained by CTV News Toronto show.
A 6-year-old girl was kidnapped in Arkansas in 1995. Almost 30 years later, a suspect was identified
Nearly 30 years after a six-year-old girl disappeared in Western Arkansas, authorities have identified a suspect in her abduction through DNA evidence.
A Michigan man is charged with killing and dismembering a janitor he met on the Grindr dating app
Prosecutors have charged a Michigan man with killing and dismembering a janitor he met on the dating app Grindr.
NEW Youth pleads guilty to manslaughter in death of P.E.I. teen Tyson MacDonald
A teen charged with the murder of another teen on Prince Edward Island last year has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter.
Haitian gang kills at least 70 people, including 3 infants, UN says
Armed men belonging to the Gran Grif gang killed at least 70 people, including three infants, as they swept through a Haitian town shooting automatic rifles at residents, a spokesperson for the United Nations' Human Rights Office said on Friday.
WATCH LIVE 2 dead after fire rips through historic building in Old Montreal
At least two people are dead and others are injured after a fire ripped through a century-old building near Montreal's City Hall, sources told Noovo Info.