Union wants more homecare options before hospital beds close

Members of the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions are meeting in Sudbury to discuss the closing of the old Memorial hospital site in Sudbury. They want the province to keep funding the beds there until there are more options for homecare in the community.

The province said it wants elderly patients living at home — not in hospital beds.

When the province stopped funding some beds at the site earlier this year, all residents were given other accommodations, said Richard Joly, the CEO of Community Care Access Centre, which manages homecare services in Sudbury.

"We always say there could be more [home care services]," Joly said. "And we’re working with our funder and other partners to develop transition plans to get to that point."

But the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions said the task of caring for frail patients is falling upon family members and the hospital.

Dave Shelefontiuk, a union representative for clerical staff and registered practical nurses at Sudbury's Health Sciences North, said there is not enough homecare.

"And until you actually produce something that works, then keep those beds funded so we can run an efficient hospital," Shelefontiuk said.

The province plans to stop funding the remaining beds next spring.

Shelefontiuk said he expects about 35 people will be affected if the beds disappear.