Odin Says ...

On the Privatization of Elderly Assistance

Feb 04, 2008

What was once considered a social responsibility is now going private.  In Quebec, traditionally, social services were relied on to provide care and assistance for our elderly.  However, with the aging population and the expected wave of baby boomers to retire, there is now a lucrative business opportunity in senior citizen home assistance.

Quebecers have several options when looking for care services for their aging parents.  For example, many CLSCs and Nursing homes are either government-subsidized or non-profit.  However, the problem is that most of these resources are over-booked and/or under-staffed, therefore they cannot provide enough hours.  Therein lies the attraction towards hiring private professionals offering a variety of services such as nursing, health care, home assistance, housekeeping and companionship.

According to Statistics Canada, around a million senior citizens currently receive assistance in their private homes.  This figure is projected to double in the next 20 years as the population of Quebec ages.  This will create even greater demand for home care services.  Several businesses have opened up in Montreal, offering such services as bathing, dressing, shopping and meal preparation.  Naturally, these services are quite costly.  You can expect to pay around $20 hourly, or $200 daily for live-in service.

Of course, not everyone is happy with this new commercial surge; a number of advocacy groups for senior citizens do not like the idea of private companies as the solution to our country’s aging demographic.  For example, Canada’s Association for the 50 Plus (CARP) is asking for a national strategy and more federal funding to deal with the issue.  The main issue such groups raise is that not everyone can afford private care.  They are worried that home care privatization will split our aging population along economic lines, benefiting the wealthy, and hurting those less fortunate and/or privileged.

On the other hand of the debate, some argue that home care is always better than institutional care.  Home care provides for a more comfortable experience and independent lifestyle for a senior.  Also, it is far cheaper to maintain than institutional care (i.e. nursing homes and hospitals).  So the challenge lies in providing home care without privatizing the industry, so as to make it available to all.