Seniors at independent living facility outraged after housing authority ends in-house care

Seniors at an independent living facility in Bridgetown, N.S., feel betrayed after the province’s housing authority announced it’s removing full-time support staff they say are the reason they moved there in the first place.

Residents at Crosskill Court are upset after Nova Scotia Provincial Housing Agency officials told them earlier this month continuing care assistants will stop working out of their facility by the spring.

“When they’re gone, there’s nobody. So I get a little scared [thinking about it],” said Linda Elrich, a resident at Crosskill Court.

The agency recently announced it’s ending in-house continuing care at three of the eight facilities that offer independent living through its enriched housing program. The program provides apartment units to 180 seniors with minimal needs in Nova Scotia.

The long-running program offers an alternative to seniors who do not want to live at home but don’t require the level of services offered in long-term care.

The agency is altering how the program is delivered at facilities in Bridgetown, Berwick and Antigonish due to operational changes and complaints by some residents about mandatory costs, according to a spokesperson.

But most residents at Crosskill Court say they were well aware of the cost before moving there and willingly pay it because they want the support services being offered.

“They think that we don’t have emotions. They think that we’re just old and you can just pat us on the head and we’ll do whatever they say,” said resident Jennifer Hunt-Boyd.

Seniors treated like family

The provincial housing agency has decades-long agreements with private long-term care facilities to offer the enriched housing program that was established in the late 1970s.

Enriched housing units are connected to the long-term care facilities, which makes accessing care easier.

Continuing care assistants provide residents one cooked meal a day, housekeeping every two weeks as well as games and exercises to keep them active.

Seniors living in these apartments have to pay $620 a month whether or not they take advantage of these services.

Residents at Crosskill Court say the care goes far beyond cooking and cleaning.

“They treat us like their grandmothers and grandfathers and it’s a nice feeling to know someone is there who cares,” said Helen Kennedy.

Pam Menchenton, executive director of client services at the housing agency, says there are a few reasons the in-house continuing care service is ending at the three facilities.

Mountain Lea Lodge, the long-term care facility attached to Crosskill Court, is moving to a new building in May. Similar changes are planned for the other two facilities and it’s not feasible to continue providing meals and care to detached facilities, Menchenton said.

She said some seniors in the program have been complaining about having to pay the mandatory fee, but she couldn’t say how many.

“The convenience factor and the relationships that [residents] built, I realize that that’s going to be different, but they can still access the services,” said Menchenton.

Residents can continue to live at the facilities they’re in but they’ll have to apply through the province to receive continuing care, she said.

Crosskill Court residents start petition

There appear to be no complaints about costs at Crosskill Court.

Nearly all of the 27 residents have signed a petition calling on the housing agency to keep the current service in place.

Some who don’t rely on the support say they’re happy to pay for it because they’ll need it in the future.

Several residents said they’re concerned the province’s service will be inferior and not as reliable as the level of care they now receive from staff they describe as guardian angels.

The province did not respond to questions about its continuing care services before publication.

Janice Brooks, who has lived at Crosskill Court for nearly a year, recently fell in her apartment and was found by support staff.

She said she doesn’t know what would have happened if they weren’t there and said if the in-house care is removed, she’ll have to find somewhere else to live.

“It should just be left the way it is,” said Brooks. “There’s no reason to change it from the way it is and make us do something else.”

MORE TOP STORIES