What are solutions for Canada’s long-term care crisis? Ask care workers, say researchers
Long-term care is not working for anyone in Canada – not for the residents or family members, and not for the care workers suffering exhaustion and moral injury from not being able to provide adequate care.
University of Calgary sociologist Janna Klostermann and CUPE’s Garry Sran and Morgan Carl say health care workers have the answers to Canada’s long-term care crisis. The researchers will present these solutions on an inspiring panel that will conclude this year’s research roundtable on the profitization of health care in Canada.
The day-long research roundtable at the University of Ottawa on October 23 is being organized by the Canadian Health Coalition and the University of Ottawa’s Centre for Health Law, Policy and Ethics.
Space is limited. Save your spot now. Lunch is provided. Network with researchers from across Canada.
Janna Klostermann’s first book, At the Limits of Care: Gendered Work and Stories that Matter, is forthcoming with the University of Toronto Press. Klostermann is interested in systemic neglect and what can be learned from continuing care staff in Alberta.
At the research roundtable, Klostermann will share what she learned from her engagement with 27 nursing, dietary, maintenance, activity, and administrative workers in the continuing care sector in Alberta. She will tell a story of how “the caring self is implicated in profit-making relations, and how dominant conceptions of work and care need to be rethought to promote equity for all involved.”
Garry Sran is CUPE National’s Senior Research Officer for health and seniors care, leading the charge against privatization and for-profit services. Morgan Carl is a Research Assistant at CUPE National.
At the research roundtable, Sran and Carl will discuss bargaining strategies to counter the rise of for-profit long-term care. They will describe how big-money actors have shaped the delivery of care and working conditions, and how unions can fight back and win at the bargaining table. Their presentation will highlight best practices for organizing campaigns and model language for collective agreements, including success stories from CUPE locals across the country.
The roundtable is an important opportunity to hear the latest research on how profitization is threatening Canada’s health care system and health equity. It is also an opportunity to meet and network with researchers, policymakers, and advocates for public health care and health equity.
