Editor:
As a 90-year-old, 35-year resident of the Sunshine Coast, I would very much like to express my dismay at the plan to close Totem and Shorncliffe in Sechelt. I’ve been a long-time member of Hospice, Shorncliffe Auxiliary, and Trefoil, and I’ve known many clients, friends and relatives who have lived at these homes. They have always received tender, loving and personal care.
Many volunteer hours and community donations have gone toward the loving care of these residents. I have worked alongside many other volunteers who have helped to create an environment of care, enjoyment and personal attention. For many years I was involved in creating monthly birthday parties for the residents, including designing birthday cakes with the personal stories and enjoyment of each resident in mind. All this volunteer care and commitment will end if the new private facility is opened. This would be an enormous loss to the residents and the community alike.
Silverstone would be a very large, for-profit facility, removed from the proximity of the hospital and the downtown core. This would cause inconvenience for visiting relatives and workers. Necessary cost-cutting measures would result in reduction of staff wages and a higher client load which, despite the best intentions of the staff, would result in a decline in personal care. The potential benefits of new and expensive facilities, which are not always necessary, would not make up for this loss.
Both in my volunteer work and in my lengthy career as an RN, I have worked in both public and private facilities. I have seen how the bottom line of profit affects all aspects of the quality of life of the residents. Sure, it can be “efficient,” but is that what really matters to us in providing the care that our elderly receive?
It would be better to put extra effort into improving, expanding and supporting the care homes we have now, taking advantage of the committed volunteers in our region, and adding more beds for end-of-life hospice care. Yes, we need more beds, but this is not the way to go about it. Let’s focus on providing the care that comes from the community spirit that is so vital to this ever-growing, beautiful Sunshine Coast.
Peggy Cotgrave, Halfmoon Bay
