Recurrent themes from the GLTCRC include violence in long- term care (LTC), elder abuse, medical management including medication use, restraints, consent and capacity and the management of dementia and psychiatric illness.

The elderly as a population present challenges in the management of complex medical and psychiatric conditions; they are best served by a multidisciplinary team of providers with specialized skills. This starts at the level of training and finishes with oversight and effective quality review.

The long-term care industry is one of the most regulated in our society. The committee often finds that what is needed is not more regulation, but rather adequate resourcing to meet the prescribed standards. This chronic lack of resources was laid bare during the Covid 19 pandemic this year. The government’s staffing review and the independent commission reviewing LTC have recommended increases in resources. It is the hope of this committee that these recommendations are heeded.

The GLTCRC appreciates the many Ontarians involved in the provision of care to the elderly. These individuals have taken on the responsibility for this valuable, and at times vulnerable, segment of our population, and they do so with considerable skill and dedication. It is hoped that the work of this committee will be of assistance to them and to the families of those whose deaths have been reviewed.