Wednesday 5 June 2013

Ms. Redford: should I plan my funeral? — Brenda Moore

With looming home care cuts. Alberta premier Alison Redford asked users to "trust" the government Tuesday afternoon.
Home care user Brenda Moore provides the following response ...



Trust You!!!###. . . .  On What grounds?  Would this be the same government that told me fifteen years ago that I should never have to worry about such a decision occurring again?       With the awarding of the contract to Creekside residents to provide client centered support back then, came a certain amount of enlightenment …… that this was a ground breaking model of service delivery in the world that fully encompassed a socially just approach.

For myself and about fourteen neighbors with severe disabilities, thanks to the Creekside Support Services, we have been able to become home owners; to fully participate in all aspects of community life; continue to be active members of the labour force and provide community service through paid or voluntary work.  Within this context we were responsible for own care.  We fear that with the proposed changes we will lose autonomy with care givers rendering us at their mercy and convenience; that these people will not be properly orientated to our individual differences placing our physical well-being at high risk; and concerned that insufficient services will be available on-site. 

Perhaps what I should be doing is planning my funeral.  What will happen to our fine, experienced Care Assistants who have become such  excellent facilitators of independence.  Oh!  And who is this government talking to.  Not us  . . . Such blatant disregard flies in the of social justice and human rights and places persons with disabilities into a position of  submissive otherness.  I guess we are then not equitable Alberta stakeholders.  TRUST YOU?  WHAT DO YOU THINK?


Do you have a concern about the provincial government's proposed home care changes? Please click here and share.

A personal letter to Alberta health minister Fred Horne from home care user Cheryl Humphrey


(Cheryl Humphrey lives in a south side condo and gets home care from Creekside Support Services. The provincial government is not renewing the CSS contract and is appointing a new contractor. This is Ms. Humphrey's response to health minister Fred Horne.)


Letter to Minister of Health
Why are you doing this to us? Life is hard! You have just made our lives much harder in many ways.
This ‘paint brush’ approach of severe changes and cutbacks, without consultation or input from our large segment of the population informs us that we are considered “second class citizens”.
Before making changes such as this please try to consider and visualize what life is like living in a wheelchair or struggling to walk.  Our quality of life is greatly determined by the quality of care available and accessible to us.   Our quality of care and life also largely determines to what extent we are able to be contributing members of society and tax payers.
Cheryl Humphrey

Redford government told home care users not to talk



Sometimes, you can be so close to a news story you need someone to show you a very important part: something you overlooked. That’s what Edmonton Journal reporter Sheila Pratt did for me Tuesday when she wrote a story about Creekside Support Services in the building where I live. CSS has been providing home care since 1997 to persons with disabilities. (I have cerebral palsy and use a wheelchair.)

We were informed Friday the provincial government will not be renewing the CSS contract, which is administered by us — the service users. In the past few days I have been blogging about what the change will mean. But after talking to Sheila — my former city editor at The Journal — she asked me to confirm something she had from two other sources in the story.

Did the provincial government enforced a gag order on us? And they did.

CSS was asked to submit a proposal for funding to the government in February. We were told by staff soliciting the proposal that if we went to our MLA or the media our proposal would be automatically disqualified. Sounds life a gag order to me, doesn’t it?

And, it also tells me the government already had their mind made up and was unwilling to listen.  When I think about it now I am angry.  And feel it is not a sign of democracy.

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