A judge says all personal care homes in Manitoba need units to deal with aggressive and violent patients who have dementia.
The recommendation stems from an inquest report into the death of Frank Alexander in 2011 at the Parkview Care Home in Winnipeg.
Alexander was assaulted by Joe McLeod, a patient with Alzheimer’s who had previously attacked his wife.
The judge said the wait for patients to get into a secure behavioural unit is one year in Manitoba and he says that’s not acceptable.
The report made a number of recommendations, including:
- Every personal care home in the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority's area have a special, secure unit to handle violent patients.
- The number of available beds should be increased so that the waiting period does not exceed 60 days.
- Increased staff training and new safety protocols at personal care homes to ensure that violent patients are fully monitored and prevented from harming others.
Manitoba’s health minister has apologized, vowing to implement the recommendations from the inquest.
The report says 500,000 people in Canada are living with dementia and that number is expected to double by 2030.
- with files from The Canadian Press
