Unresolved complaints highlight need for independent Rep for adult services

1 Apr/11 0

Unresolved complaints highlight need for independent Rep for adult services

We have received a number of enquiries recently from families expressing alarm and frustration with the failure of CLBC's complaints resoultion mechanisms. I thought it might be helpful to share a recent question received via our Website, along with some helpful advice kindly provided by BCACL staff and others, along with links/resources that others may find useful.

QUESTION: "Does CLBC allow outside (CLBC Quality Control) non-partial investigations into abuse and if so how do I make a request for one? I requested an investigation by CLBC Quality Control but was told I couldn’t access the results. They also have not done a proper investigation because they have not contacted anyone directly involved (ie: witnesses). Any ideas would be appreciated."

MOMS RESPONSE: I discussed your question with staff at the BC Association for Community Living, who have a better understanding of the legal & policy requirements than we do, and here is the response:

“My experience with investigations of abuse is that the third party should be the RCMP or local police. Once there is the involvement of police all other processes should stop pending the outcome. If you feel that the CLBC investigation has not been sufficient and you have concerns about harm done and/or safety of a person then involving the police is appropriate. The involvement of the police is not a matter of choice for CLBC or any other body, agency or service provider.”

UPDATE: Here's some additional advice from another veteran service provider:

"Although the advice to call the police is good advice, the problem is that many situations that could be considered abusive within the caregiving context – neglect, belittling, humiliating, punishing – may not meet the test of a criminal offense. Only situations of major abuse – sexual, physical – have a criminal justice system remedy. This is why we need someone like Mary Ellen, who can factor in all the elements of a person’s treatment to determine whether or not some abuse has taken place. Expediting a response is also important because the longer you leave someone in an abusive situation, the more pain will be caused. In addition, many of the people we support are non-verbal and cannot self-report, so even more reason for a watchdog. "

Other complaints: We continue to hear many of the same concerns that have been raised in ongoing advocacy campaigns:

Individuals and families in great distress denied access and support due to budget cuts and waitlists
Forced moves to different residential settings (and different communities) against the wishes of individuals and/or their families, simply to cut costs.
People who want to move or who are not satisfied with their current placement, even where the families believe there are serious unresolved complaints, not being permitted to move, because the individual's funding is tied up in an agency contract.

There is unfortunately nowhere to review and resolve many of these complaints in a manner that would instill confidence in the system, although we encourage anyone with concerns to review the options below and to use whatever is most appropriate/effective in their particular situation.

Independent safeguards/advocacy & review

One of the key issues that has come to the forefront in the community living advocacy campaign that we launched with a broad coalition of other partner groups in the fall is the lack of an effective independent voice to provide oversight & safeguards, to launch independent investigations & respond to complaints, provide public reporting, etc. The structure of existing complaint resolution/service quality assurance mechanisms is simply not working in far too many cases and this has emerged from our community forums and other feedback, such as the complaint above, as a critical gap.

In contrast, the establishment of BC's independent Representative for Children & Youth, a key recommendation of the Hughes report, provided a "one-stop shopping" access point for families, children and others to bring forward issues and concerns, plus provincial oversight, investigations and public reporting.

Providing independent safeguards, advocacy and oversight for adults was a commitment when Canada signed on to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Article 12.4):

"States Parties shall ensure that all measures that relate to the exercise of legal capacity provide for appropriate and effective safeguards to prevent abuse in accordance with international human rights law. Such safeguards shall ensure that measures relating to the exercise of legal capacity respect the rights, will and preferences of the person, are free of conflict of interest and undue influence, are proportional and tailored to the person’s circumstances, apply for the shortest time possible and are subject to regular review by a competent, independent and impartial authority or judicial body. The safeguards shall be proportional to the degree to which such measures affect the person’s rights and interests."

BC and CLBC are clearly failing to honour that commitment in the case of adults with developmental disabilities.

MORE INFO ON COMPLAINTS RESOLUTION OPTIONS

Below are some links to the mechanisms that currently exist, which may provide relief, so we still encourage families to utilize them, while recognizing that (as with appeals in the education system) at the end of the day, the final decisions are up to the same administration that's responsible for the problems in the first place:

CLBC has information on complaints resolutions processes and policies on its Web site (Although you'd need to do some sleuthing to find it on your own - Seriously, why isn't "Got an issue or concern we can help you resolve?" not a nice bold button on their home page? Another problem is the info is fragmented, bureaucratic and confusing: Does an issue fall under Adult Guardianship, Critical incident reporting, CLBC's complaint resolution policy or is it an issue for the Advocate for Service Quality? What do you read first? Which policies apply?)

CLBC's information about the complaints process
The actual policy document is probably the most useful piece in terms of providing an overview
Other CLBC policies , including critical incident reporting, adult guardianship legislation, the forms you need to fill out before you can actually file a complaint, plus facts sheets in different languages. (It seems you can only make a complaint by mail or by fax - there is no email contact or option to file a complaint via the web/email!)
BC also has an Advocate for Service Quality who works in the ministry office, who may be able to help with some complaints, although her mandate is very limited and there is no independence in the office itself, which reports to the same minister ultimately responsible for the decisions. (The email contact, which seems to be missing from the website is : [email protected] ).
In some cases, where families have written to the Minister ( [email protected] ) and or Opposition Critic for Community Living ( [email protected] ), they have been able to intervene to resolve serious cases. Additional pressure via media coverage of the concern has often proved the only way to secure a response.