A private screening of a film in Montreal about deaths in Long Term Care facilities
By Joanne of Arc (Quebec Life Coalition) - Photo: Joanne of Arc
In Montreal, on Wednesday, September 28, there was an exclusive screening of the film "CHSLD - Je me souviens" [LTC Homes – I remember] directed by Sylvain Laforest, about the 6,700 victims in Private senior's residence (RPA) who were seriously affected from spring 2020 to spring 2021.
People finally met in a resto-bar to discuss, eat and drink, regardless of their vaccination status. After two years of terror and trauma imposed by the government during the state of emergency created during the pandemic, the "Macarons de la Dignité" group facilitated a memorable gathering that allowed people to remember the elders who were brutally mistreated during the confinement periods imposed during the pandemic.
The magnitude of what happened to the elderly, who were in a capacity deficit in our society during this time of crisis, requires an independent commission of inquiry. The documentary brings to light through several testimonies the abominable way in which people at the end of their lives were treated in Long Term Care Homes (homes for the aged).
To go into detail, although it is difficult to share, the seniors in the LTC Homes were denied water for 10 days so that they would not fill their diapers. Then they were denied vitamins C and D. Finally, they were neglected when their mouths were full of vomit and their diapers were full. The nursing homes floors were empty of staff members and those who were present were overwhelmed with their responsibilities. Many of the decisions that were made under these circumstances lacked empathy and humanity towards the residents.
For example, one account in the documentary tells us of a senior who was locked in his room with several padlocks placed on his door, as if he was an animal in a cage. The elder in question resisted with all his physical abilities and destroyed the padlocks by forcing them. Imposing all this for the sake of public health and safety?
What about the mental health of the residents of these centers? They could not even walk to get some fresh air, see or touch their loved ones, and the only activity they were allowed was to watch television, which did nothing but talk about the virus and spread fear 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
In the documentary, retired professor, ex-psychologist and author Lucie Mandeville talks about this fear. Fear is one of the strongest emotions in human beings that will create traumas in the individual. People at the end of their lives in LTC Homes have not only been neglected, but traumatized. These are serious consequences to which we have turned a blind eye.
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