Why B.C. needs a truly independent Seniors Advocate

“Now is the time to revisit the question of the office’s independence”

By Mike Klassen

Earlier this year the BC Care Providers Association (BCCPA) board met and, after a lengthy deliberation, voted to support a resolution calling upon the provincial government to introduce legislation at the earliest opportunity to establish an independent Seniors Advocate as an officer of the B.C. Legislature.

As indicated in a letter sent to the B.C. government following the board motion, this aligns with the direction that the BC NDP advocated to the previous government back in 2013, when the original Seniors Advocate Act was tabled in the legislature.

Last March marked five years since the legislation was debated in the B.C. Legislature to establish a Seniors Advocate, and four years since the office was formally launched under the purview of the Ministry of Health. Isobel Mackenzie was appointed as the province’s first Seniors Advocate on March 19, 2014.[1]

Mike Klassen, VP Communications & Stakeholder Relations

As BCCPA has outlined in its letter to government, after four years we believe now is an opportune time to fully implement the vision of the office initially supported by the BC NDP, as a fully independent advocate.

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In a March 2014 news release, the BC New Democrats welcomed the long-awaited appointment of a seniors advocate but noted that seniors in the province were denied a truly independent advocate. At the time the party’s opposition critic Katrine Conroy argued that seniors deserved an independent representative for their concerns, someone who can investigate both individual and systemic problems.[2]

We support the fundamental point made by Conroy — that the OSA should be able to stand up for seniors “without being encumbered by the reality of being employed by the people whose decisions they are evaluating.”

It was following the release of the Ombudsperson report on Seniors, that the B.C. government in its Improving Care for B.C. Seniors: An Action Plan (February 2012) committed to establishing an Office of the Seniors Advocate (OSA) to support a more accessible, transparent and accountable approach to addressing the issues and interests of seniors in British Columbia. After public consultations across the province, the government introduced Bill 10, the Seniors Advocate Act, making B.C. the first province in Canada to pass legislation to create an Office of the Seniors Advocate.

Appointing the seniors advocate as part of the B.C. Ministry of Health aligned with the commitment made in the Seniors Action Plan. However, the new office would also be tasked with studying other complex seniors’ issues outside of health — as seen by the OSA’s most recent report on transportation.[3]

Establishing the office was assuredly an important step to support B.C.’s seniors. However, several seniors care sector stakeholders including BCCPA think now is the time to revisit the question of the office’s independence.

This is not meant as a criticism of the current seniors advocate Ms. Mackenzie, nor the work of the office. Since 2014, the OSA has produced a number of high quality reports with lots of data and information on seniors. The office has performed admirably as passionate advocates for seniors issues.

Rather, it is to speak up for the vision of having an independent seniors advocate, and to ask if the role could be more effective in providing meaningful change to improve the quality of life for seniors.

The B.C. government in their written response to BCCPA stated it has no current plans to revisit the Seniors Advocate Act. They noted that section 4(1) of the Act provides the legal requirement that the Seniors Advocate must advise in an independent manner, as well as be able to report out to the public on any matters that arise from fulfilling responsibilities under the Act.

We believe that this position should be reconsidered, however, for the following reasons.

First and foremost, an independent seniors advocate can champion recommendations for systemic changes not just limited to the mandate to health care delivery.

The OSA should be provided with the authority to monitor, review, audit and conduct research for the purpose of making recommendations for systemic improvements to seniors care across the province. They would also be given the power to release reports that do not require the approval of any government body or ministry.

As with the B.C. Ombudsperson or Representative for Children and Youth, the OSA should be appointed by and report to all the elected members of the Legislative Assembly.

We also think the Office of the Seniors Advocate should be funded not through general health care monies, but rather through separate or alternate funds. In 2016/17, the OSA budget, which came from the Ministry of Health was over $4 million including funds for a major residential care survey,[4] money which could have been better allocated to directly fund improvements to seniors care throughout the province.

As an independent office, separate from the Health Ministry, it would be possible to avoid having in-demand health care dollars being allocated to fund the OSA.

Ideally, the OSA should be dealing with broader seniors issues outside of health care in addition to challenges around transportation, such as housing, access to the arts, or the impacts of aging on regional planning. Government ministries would then appreciate that seniors have needs that go beyond health care alone.

B.C. took a bold step when it tabled legislation to establish Canada’s first Office of the Seniors Advocate over five years ago. Now the provincial government should take a further step for B.C.’s seniors by making the OSA fully independent.

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