TORONTO - Health Minister George Smitherman should resign, or at least apologize, for offering to test adult diapers worn by seniors in Ontario nursing homes -- a "sideshow'' that trivializes a serious issue of public health and human dignity, critics said Thursday.
But Premier Dalton McGuinty is standing by his minister, saying late Thursday that Smitherman shouldn't resign.
"The minister has apologized,'' McGuinty said after speaking to about 2,600 party supporters at a glitzy Liberal fundraiser in Toronto.
"I've known George for a long time, and he is nothing if not absolutely devoted to his responsibilities and Ontario families when it comes to ensuring that they've got the best possible health care, and particularly when it comes to improving the quality of care in our long-term care homes.''
Smitherman was keeping a low profile one day after he said he was contemplating trying out incontinence products in response to critics who say nursing home residents, who spend hours on end wallowing in soiled diapers, deserve a higher standard of care.
Some long-term care advocates said it wouldn't hurt Smitherman to experience the indignity for himself, but opposition leaders John Tory and Howard Hampton accused the Liberals of fishing for headlines instead of drafting a plan to improve nursing-home care.
"I don't know how the public can have any confidence in Smitherman as minister of health,'' said Hampton, the New Democrat leader.
"This is a very serious issue and George Smitherman turns it into a laughing matter, a three-ring circus. You can't have a minister of health who doesn't take these issues seriously. He should resign.''
People who have parents in long-term care homes and those who work in nursing homes know how serious the situation is, Hampton added. Workers are "run off their feet'' and go home every night knowing they aren't giving seniors the care they deserve, he said.
Caregivers say some facilities are so short-staffed, residents are forced to wait for hours for meals, are put to bed too early and aren't getting enough exercise. Long-term care associations are asking the province to increase funding by at least $500 million a year so residents get an average of three hours of care a day.
If Smitherman was serious about improving care in Ontario nursing homes, he would bring forward a serious plan to improve conditions within two weeks, said Tory, the leader of the provincial Conservatives.
"He absolutely, positively should apologize because he has trivialized and insulted the indignities being experienced by far too many senior citizens in Ontario,'' he said.
"He should commit himself to bringing forward some actual measures to address some of what's going on in the long-term care system in Ontario.''
Smitherman declined to be interviewed about the issue or respond to his critics Thursday afternoon. His office issued a written statement saying the minister is doing his best to see the issue from the perspective of the patient.
"If people were offended or think that I shouldn't have raised those comments, I do apologize,'' Smitherman said in the statement. "But I want everyone to know I wasn't trivializing the matter. I take it really, really seriously.''
Long-term care advocates are hoping Smitherman's offer means he's seriously considering boosting standards of care for the elderly. Sitting for hours in soiled diapers is just one symptom of underfunding, they said.
"We can all imagine and we can all shudder at the situation,'' said Janet Lambert, executive director of the Ontario Long-Term Care Association.
"(Smitherman) shouldn't have to sit with an incontinence pad on all day and neither should our residents.''
The province has had six years to understand the impact of underfunding long-term care homes, Lambert added. Ontario is at the bottom of the pack when it comes to its standard of care and it wouldn't take much to hire more personal care workers to improve the lives of the elderly, she said.
Donna Rubin, chief executive officer of the Ontario Association of Non-Profit Homes and Services for Seniors, welcomed Smitherman's interest but said the issues in long-term care homes go beyond choosing which incontinence products to use.
"Currently there are not enough resources and that's why people are crying out for attention,'' she said. "Long-term care doesn't need more money to incontinence products. It needs more staff to deliver care.''
