PC health critic calls for police investigation after AG report on personal care homes

Progressive Conservative health critic Barry Petten is calling for a police investigation after the release of an auditor general's report on personal care homes.

"Deaths. Sexual abuse. Feces on the wall. Hunger. Not showered. I mean, abuse by owners," Petten told reporters on Wednesday.

"I do believe it should be a police investigation."

Auditor general Denise Hanrahan released another scathing report on Tuesday, this one focused on the province's personal care home program. It highlights alleged instances of sexual abuse, an accidental overdose, cases of non-compliance and pervasive incidents across the sector.

Petten said seniors in Newfoundland and Labrador are being failed, and that this isn't the first time he's raised the issue of seniors falling through the cracks.

He says he wants to know if there ever was a police investigation into the allegation of sexual abuse, an accidental overdose or an incident where a resident allegedly went for a regular walk, never returned and was later found dead.

"Are the police going to come and investigate this? This needs to be looked into. This is an embarrassment," Petten said.

Calls for accountability

In her report, Hanrahan said the Department of Health and Community Services had failed in its responsibility to oversee and enforce operational standards, which haven't been updated since 2007.

Some of the issues raised in the report were also raised by the auditor general's office in 2015.

The timing is significant, says Petten.

"We have one common denominator that's been there for the last ten years and it's there again now — John Haggie. The pucks got to stop where the pucks got to stop," he said.

Petten says Haggie was the health minister for a significant portion of that decade and is currently in the position on an interim basis.

"I'd be curious to see what he's got to say," Petten said, adding the problems outlined in the report "falls on the feet" of the health department.

Spokesperson Jennifer Konieczny said Haggie could be available for an interview on Friday.

"We acknowledge that there are opportunities for improvement and agree that the system needs to collectively improve how seniors receive care," she wrote in an email to CBC News.

Konieczny added the department will work with the health authority to improve operational standards, improve the complaint management processes as well as the public reporting of inspection reports, among others.

The department also has a reporting and reviewing process for serious incidents, she said.

Petten is also calling for accountability and for people to be held responsible.

"You can't just let these things happen and say, 'OK, we're going to accept the recommendation to move on. Let's forget about this tomorrow.' This should not be forgotten about," he said.

"Everything will come home to roost and government really got to clean this up. This is just not acceptable."

In an email to CBC News, RCMP Cpl. Jolene Garland said she isn't able to provide more details or confirm if police investigations are happening or have happened. Hanrahan's report didn't include details about when or where the alleged incidents took place.

"As such, we are unable to provide information in response," Garland said. 

The RCMP investigates all sudden deaths, along with the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

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