Editor:
I responded to your question of the week by clicking “yes” to indicate that I agree with Gibsons council’s decision to sell land to Trellis; I believe that VCH has selected a solid provider, with a good reputation in other B.C. municipalities for quality residential care, and that VCH will hold Trellis accountable.
I know beyond a doubt that our local hospital needs to free up acute care beds to meet the needs of acutely ill patients. Good friends of ours have, over the past several weeks, spent countless hours on ferries to visit their son in a Vancouver hospital, because Sechelt Hospital was completely jammed.
But there is more background to my “yes.” My mother was cared for in a wonderful privately-owned and operated residential care facility in Ontario. The facility was immaculate, the meals were nourishing and appetizing, and the staff both cared for her, and cared about her.
My mum loved to talk to people, while she still had that ability, and especially to hear their stories. Through this gift, she learned that the care attendants were proud of their jobs, which were enabling them to work close to home, support their families, and educate their children. As a retired teacher, she especially enjoyed seeing the grad photos they brought in to show her.
Gibsons could benefit from a facility like that – a community health facility, as the Christenson family specified they wished to see on that land, which would provide much-needed residential care beds, close to where the residents’ families live and where their physicians’ practice and also job opportunities and other economic benefits to our town.
Helen Carkner, Gibsons
