Sask. NDP Leader Ryan Meili (Lisa Schick/980 CJME file photo)

By CKOM News

NDP calls for changes in long-term care homes

Nov 20, 2020 | 6:19 PM

The Saskatchewan NDP is calling for changes to the provincial government’s COVID-19 response in long-term care homes.

In a release Friday, Leader Ryan Meili and Matt Love, the party’s critic for seniors, made a few calls to action.

They asked the government to dip into the COVID contingency fund to hire more staff members in long-term care homes.

The opposition would also like to see better communication from the province about outbreaks, an independent review into the quality of long-term care, and a review of staffing levels to make sure no workers are moving between facilities.

“I have been talking to families and care providers in the past few weeks. It’s clear people do not know what is being done, and what is being planned, to keep family members safe,” Love said in the release.

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“We know staff and medical professionals are doing everything they can, but the fact is people are scared. The government needs to make a plan and communicate that plan clearly to everyone in Saskatchewan.”

On Tuesday, the provincial government implemented a number of new measures it hopes will help curb the spread of the virus. One of those was suspending visits to long-term and personal care homes other than for compassionate reasons.

Love and Meili said they aren’t only concerned with protecting seniors from the virus, but also with helping those who could be dealing with mental health issues.

They believe that could be achieved by ramping up technology use at long-term care homes so that seniors can stay in touch with their friends and families, to help deal with loneliness and isolation.

980 CJME has reached out to the Saskatchewan Party government for a response to the NDP’s calls to action, but has not received a response yet.