Quebec invests $5M for home decor in long-term care facilities
Some residents of long-term care facilities will soon have the ability to choose their own paint colours and furniture options, Marguerite Blais announced Sunday.
The government is investing an additional $5 million for cosmetic renovations in the province's long-term care facilities, known in French as CHSLDs.
Contrary to the $2.6 billion the province invested in long-term care facilities last November, it will be up to the resident committees of each CHSLD to decide what they would like to do with the additional cash.
Where the $2.6 billion was aimed at getting the essentials into long-term care facilities, such as air conditioning and additional rooms, Blais said this new budget would be aimed at smaller projects like gardens or furniture for the residents.
"It's a first in the history of Quebec because they will take the initiative of what they want," said Blais.
Blais said the idea behind the new budget is to make residents feel more at-home. Though this is a one-time initiative for now, Blais said she is working to get it renewed yearly.
The budget will be divided across the province's network of private and public care facilities, which consists of more than 2,500 CHSLD's. The money will be distributed according to the number of residents each one accommodates.
The announcement was made at the CHSLD Armand-Lavergne, where residents already have a certain level of autonomy.
"Here, they have empowerment and we want every CHSLD to have this type of empowerment," said Blais.
Irene Boileau, a resident at the CHSLD Armand-Lavergne and the president of its residents committee, said the residents recently got to repaint their rooms whatever colour they wanted to.
Boileau herself chose to paint her room purple, and said it made her feel a lot happier.
"This will help us make even more renovations," said Boileau.
She said residents of the Armand-Lavergne facility are hoping to use the new budget to purchase better windows.
Patricia Gagné, the director general of the group that oversees resident committees, said this new power is something residents have wanted for a while.
"It's been proven by research that the decor, the environment, the colour on the walls have a direct impact on the mental and physical health of the residents," said Gagné.
"It's not a lot [of money] but it is a first. What we want is for it to become recurring."
