Almost 10,000 seniors and their families participated in a survey conducted by the B.C. Seniors Advocate about home supports offered throughout the province.
The results of the survey were released Monday in a report that reported 62 per cent of clients satisfied with the home support services they receive.
The standout findings were that 92 per cent of those participating in the survey said the support staff were caring and respectful while on the flip side only 47 per cent believed them to have the necessary skills to provide good care. The number of different workers caring for a client saw 20 per cent of those surveyed mentioning that concern.
Many who were surveyed want more services. Housekeeping came in at 28 per cent who would like that service while 12 per cent would like meal preparation as part of the services offered.
"We need to look at how the housekeeping and meal preparation needs of our clients can be better met, how we can reduce the number of different workers involved in care delivery, and how we can increase the skills of a work force that is highly compassionate," said Isobel Mackenzie, Seniors Advocate for B.C.
In addition to asking questions about home support services, the survey asked participants about their use of medications. Issues like how many different medications they were taking - 80 per cent of clients knew how many they took. Only 59 per cent knew why they were taking those medications and that number dropped dramatically to 17 percent to those who knew what side effects are caused by the medication they take
"This is important at any age, but particularly crucial for seniors because, in some cases, we might think there is a cognitive impairment or permanent condition when, in fact, what we are seeing is a side effect from one of the many medications some seniors are prescribed," said Mackenzie.
The survey was conducted in the fall of 2015 and responses were received from 5,336 clients and 4,040 family members.
To view the Office of the Seniors Advocate home support survey report and full survey results visit www.seniorsadvocatebc.ca.
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