Many private long-term care homes in P.E.I. 'only partially compliant' with standards, says MLA

Ryan McKellop · CBC News

· Posted: Nov 05, 2025 2:24 PM EST | Last Updated: November 5

About a twelve Islanders who person loved ones successful privately operated semipermanent attraction homes successful Prince Edward Island accidental they're acrophobic astir the attraction their loved ones are getting successful examination to those surviving successful government-run homes.

In a missive to Health and Wellness Minister Mark McLane, the radical shared "deep concerns" astir a deficiency of training, timely aesculapian attraction and authorities oversight successful the backstage facilities.

One of those who signed the letter, Susan Munn, was astatine the P.E.I. Legislature connected Wednesday. Her parent is 98 years aged and lives successful a backstage semipermanent attraction home. Munn spoke connected behalf of the acrophobic residents.

"We are advocating for the aforesaid standards, the aforesaid regulations, the aforesaid level of attraction for our loved ones that exists successful the different systems," she said.

"There's been preventable furniture sores, there's been situations wherever dementia patients person wandered extracurricular unbeknownst to the staff, and there's been situations wherever there's been untrained folks that are caring for our loved ones."

Munn would besides similar to spot much transparency astir however families are informed astir incidents that hap — thing she said isn't happening now.

The radical has tried to enactment with unit astatine the backstage homes, she said, and it has reached retired to the Department of Health and Wellness and P.E.I.'s ombudsperson, each with constricted success.

Concerns addressed successful legislature

Their concerns were addressed during Wednesday's question play successful the legislative assembly.

"What bash you accidental to these residents and families who person been near without the due attraction that they consciousness similar they deserve?" Liberal MLA Gord McNeilly asked McLane.

"Our seniors merit the champion attraction we tin springiness them wrong the province," the wellness curate replied. "There's nary uncertainty I privation that, our seniors privation that and families privation that."

McLane said families person avenues done which they tin question improvements successful privately tally homes.

"We person a complaints-based strategy that we usage to negociate accreditation and compliance astatine our backstage semipermanent attraction homes," helium said.

Liberal MLA and wellness professional Gord McNeilly brought up concerns from Island families astir attraction provided successful backstage semipermanent attraction homes during question play successful the legislature Wednesday. (Legislative Assembly of P.E.I.)

McNeilly, though, said immoderate backstage homes are granted full-care licences without reaching immoderate cardinal attraction standards. He said he's reviewed inspection reports and licensing letters for each of the province's 11 backstage semipermanent attraction facilities.

"Many facilities are lone partially compliant with cardinal attraction standards, yet they're inactive being granted afloat licences," helium said.

"In immoderate cases, homes received provisional licences owed to deficiencies and, erstwhile re-inspected months later, the aforesaid issues remained… but afloat licences were inactive issued."

CBC News besides reviewed immoderate those inspection reports, which bash amusement a fig of homes with outstanding problems — though the reports bash not outline what enactment needs to beryllium done.

'Government is letting this descent by'

McLane said his section has invested wealth into ensuring that the modular of attraction successful some nationalist and backstage homes was equal.

"We're surely not going to adjacent beds because... of a tiny provisional issue," helium said. "We volition enactment with the operators to hole that and to support our residents successful a harmless and protected environment."

After question period, McNeilly told reporters that semipermanent attraction homes request to beryllium up to standard.

"They're non-compliant and the curate has to support giving them provisional licences, and they support doing that, but they support missing what they're expected to bash to get them up to standards," helium said.

"The facilities are astir apt not getting the enactment of government. Government is letting this descent by and we're going done this cycle."

Health and Wellness Minister Mark McLane says a 2023 outer reappraisal of semipermanent attraction successful P.E.I. included 17 recommendations, but it volition instrumentality clip to person them each implemented. (Legislative Assembly of P.E.I.)

Speaking with reporters, McLane said helium was disappointed the concerns made their mode to the level of legislature.

"I'm not progressive successful the ailment process astatine our semipermanent attraction facilities, truthful we bash person a precise rigorous ailment strategy successful spot wherever we usage a committee successful bid to analyse complaints oregon concerns," helium said, adding that helium trusts the ailment committee volition marque recommendations to the semipermanent attraction facilities to summation information and staffing.

In 2023, an outer reappraisal recovered that P.E.I.'s semipermanent attraction homes "were not sufficiently prepared for a pandemic" erstwhile the COVID-19 situation began, starring to the prime of attraction for residents deteriorating, according to an outer sheet appointed by the provincial government.

The study made 17 recommendations for improvement, including putting nationalist and backstage attraction homes nether a azygous legislative enactment truthful that they don't person antithetic accreditation and inspection regimes.

McLane said implementing the recommendations volition instrumentality time.