Province forms group to implement changes in Protection for Persons in Care Office
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The Manitoba government has formed a working group to implement recommendations made by retired justice William Burnett on how to overhaul its Protection for Persons in Care Office.
The working group will consult with stakeholders, staff in the office, the seniors advocate and residents of care facilities and their families on how best to carry out the recommendations contained in Burnett’s report.
The former Progressive Conservative government appointed Burnett to the task in 2023 following a scathing report by the auditor general about the PPCO’s failure to protect vulnerable Manitobans, including those in personal-care homes.
Burnett recommended the new office be independent, impartial and at arm’s length from health facilities and service providers and “free from political interference.”
Among other things, his report suggested all reports of abuse or neglect in Manitoba health facilities be transferred to the new office, it should publish statistics and additional information on the number of investigations it conducts and their outcomes and that it must be more transparent and accountable to people in care, families, caregivers and members of the public.
In a news release, Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara said the department has reviewed Burnett’s findings and is working to implement them “responsibly over time.”
The auditor general’s investigation of the PPCO covered a span of six years (2015-2021) and probed allegations of residents being sexually assaulted, kicked in the shin, hit in the face with a remote control, pinned down and verbally abused. In each case, the office deemed the allegations as “unfounded.”
Asagwara said in the release that the province would be appointing a seniors advocate this fall to align with the Nov. 1 opening of the seniors advocate office.
The office’s mandate is to “identify and evaluate issues faced by seniors and elders, consult with representative groups and make recommendations to the Manitoba government,” the release said.
nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca
Nicole Buffie
Multimedia producer
Nicole Buffie is a reporter for the Free Press city desk. Born and bred in Winnipeg, Nicole graduated from Red River College’s Creative Communications program in 2020 and worked as a reporter throughout Manitoba before joining the Free Press newsroom as a multimedia producer in 2023. Read more about Nicole.
Every piece of reporting Nicole produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Nicole Buffie
Multimedia producer
Nicole Buffie is a reporter for the Free Press city desk. Born and bred in Winnipeg, Nicole graduated from Red River College’s Creative Communications program in 2020 and worked as a reporter throughout Manitoba before joining the Free Press newsroom as a multimedia producer in 2023. Read more about Nicole.
Every piece of reporting Nicole produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
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