Continue quest for beds at H.J. McFarland

Council will review a request at today’s committee of the whole meeting to continue to pursue additional beds for the County-owned H.J. McFarland Memorial nursing home.

The report of the Corporate Services and Finance Commission recommends council endorse continuing the quest for 78 beds due to the closure of Picton Manor, in 2012. Following the closure, requests were made to the South East Local Health Integration Network and Ministry of Health and Long Term Care, but to date, the beds have not been allocated. The County has the highest average of aging population in the province.

The South East LHIN has 4,050 long-term care beds in total – 28 homes with 128 beds or less and 18 homes with less than 100 beds Almost half of the beds require redevelopment, affecting 25 per cent of long-term care homes.

H.J. McFarland is included in this need for redevelopment. Should the additional beds be allocated to the County within the next 24 months, the design and construction of the expansion can be aligned with the redevelopment, required by the Ministry, by 2025. The additional beds will also maximize funding available from the SELHIN and ministry, reducing, or possibly eliminating, the contribution by taxpayers.

The seven municipal homes in the South East LHIN catchment area are:
Hastings, 363 beds (two homes, combined beds)
Kingston, 170 beds
Frontenac, 128 beds
Lenoox and Addington, 168 beds
Lanark County, 163 beds
St. Lawrence, 284 beds (two homes, combined beds)
Prince Edward County, 84 beds

The total municipal beds tally 1,360 of 4,050 available in the South East LHIN. The remaining 2,690 beds are privately owned.

Prince Edward County has projected a 28 per cent growth in the population of residents of 75 years and over between the years of 2014-2021.