Editor:
As a councillor in Gibsons I was not elected to be an authority on provincial health care. But I’m a lifelong supporter of public health care, and was shocked and disappointed by the closures of Shorncliffe and Totem. Considering how desperately needed long-term care is on the Coast, Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) should allocate more beds soon, this time with public consultation.
Regarding the public beds that have already been awarded by VCH to Trellis, a distinction must be made between purely “for profit” care and government-funded, contracted public care. There are many care homes and beds in B.C. that are entirely private, “for profit” and only for people who can afford them; they receive no public funding.
There is no doubt the Christenson family didn’t intend their Shaw Road land to go to this kind of “for profit” use. That is why the “community health care” phrase in the property covenant is not being interpreted by the Town as anything other than publicly funded health care. That is why unlike the Silverstone proposal in Sechelt, there cannot be any “private pay”-only beds in the proposed Gibsons facility. All the beds in Gibsons would be just as accessible to anyone, publicly subsidized at the same level per resident, and serviced to the same government standards as at Totem, Shorncliffe and Christenson Village. If this doesn’t sound much like free enterprise, that’s because it isn’t.
In a process that was also open to non-profits, Trellis was selected by VCH to build the facility and deliver public service. With very few exceptions, this is how our public health authorities have been expanding “community health care” for many years, like it or not. Even though I for one strongly prefer public or non-profit delivery, this is the model our public authorities have chosen, and for which high provincial standards of care, fiscal transparency and labour relations should be upheld and honoured.
Silas White, Councillor, Town of Gibsons
