NDP Leader Howard Hampton is calling for Minister of Health and Long-Term Care George Smitherman to resign for failing to address the critical problems in Ontario’s long-term care homes.

“Seniors are not getting the care they need to meet their basic needs and in return the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care shows complete insensitivity to the families and residents living in long-term care homes by joking he’s prepared to don an incontinence product,” said Hampton.

“After four years of promising a ‘revolution in long term care’, there are still no minimum standards of daily nursing and personal care for seniors living in long-term care homes. It’s become quite clear that Ontarians can’t trust this Minister to take health and long-term care seriously. His actions were offensive, insulting and he has demonstrated he’s not fit for the job. Given his troubling pattern of questionable statements, it’s time for Minister Smitherman to resign or Dalton McGuinty to fire him!” stated Hampton.

Hampton was reacting to comments Smitherman made yesterday that he would personally test an adult incontinence product used by residents in long-term care homes

The NDP believes seniors in long-term care homes deserve a guaranteed minimum standard of nursing and personal care of 3.5 hours a day. Current government policies direct workers to ration the amount of incontinent care products due to budgetary and time constraints.
A minimum standard of hands-on care would ensure that, at the very least, our seniors get the basic support they need every day.

“For the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care to reduce the serious problems of inadequate hands-on care in nursing homes to jokes about incontinence products clearly shows that long-term care is not on the McGuinty Liberals radar. Smitherman has no other choice but to resign. After a lifetime of building our province and communities, our seniors deserve better and a Minister who at least shows serious concern for their plight.”