Residents uneasy as company running 48 Quebec seniors' homes files for creditor protection

A Quebec company that runs over 48 seniors homes has filed for creditor protection, leaving residents uneasy about the future.

In a note sent to over 14,000 seniors on Nov. 14, Selection Retraite said the request is a product of the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation and hiked interest rates.

The company claimed services offered to residences wouldn't be impacted.

"This process, which is not a bankruptcy or a loss of control, will allow us to proceed with a court-assisted financial restructuring. It is very important to underline that there will be no changes in the services normally offered to you, including general care, catering, sports or hobbies," the note reviewed by CTV News reads.

But according to the president of seniors' rights organization AQDR, Pierre Lynch, residents are nevertheless worried.

"Some of our members are residents in these facilities, and they're quite concerned presently with what's going to happen," he said. "They're scared of the unknown."

He believes the company has had cash flow problems for years because of rapid growth.

"When you're growing your business and you're growing it too fast, sometimes you overdraw your cash flow. You have to borrow a lot to pay for your new establishments," Lynch said.

He called on Quebec Seniors Minister Sonia Belanger to meet with Selection Retraite and get a clearer picture of what's going on -- for the sake of residents' peace of mind.

"For senior people, uncertainty, it's not a good thing. It has impacts on health, it has impacts on everything."

Lynch said he's been trying to reach Selection Retraite for several days without success.

CTV News also contacted Selection Retraite Sunday but did not receive a response.