As of March 2020, twenty people who have been deemed ready for discharge are detained at the East Coast Forensic Hospital. They are needlessly placed at an elevated risk for acquiring COVID-19 in addition to being exposed to numerous other ethical, legal, social, and health issues.
PSA: On Tuesday April 14 please join a twitter storm and email campaign to demand the release of as many prisoners as possible from federal custody. Delaying release places us all in danger.
Facing the same threat of coronavirus, a new order issued by Dr. Strang institutes more accountability for nursing homes than for institutions for people with developmental disabilities. That leaves Community Services off the hook, and that is wrong, says human rights lawyer Claire McNeil. As well, protocols around isolation of infected residents need to be revisited.
KJIPUKTUK (Halifax) – During this horrible pandemic people who live with disabilities face unique challenges. Maybe you are self isolating but you can no longer rely on your homecare worker visiting regularly. Or maybe you are institutionalized, non-verbal and no longer able to communicate with staff because a caregiver you rely on is no longer allowed to visit. We talk with Sherry Costa, provincial coordinator for the Nova Scotia League for Equal Opportunities (NSLEO) about these and other issues.
Warren (Gus) Reed; “I wonder when Strang got hand washing religion. Four years ago, wheelchair users asked Strang to weigh in on enforcement of the province’s food safety regulation requiring “washroom facilities for staff and washroom facilities for the public available in a convenient location” in restaurants. He was indifferent:”
I am writing this letter from my apartment in north end Halifax, which I haven’t left in over three weeks except for one appointment. Many days since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, my Home Care workers have cancelled their regular visits. I feel like my home has become a remote island beyond human connection, and I am a castaway.
COVID-19 related demands by a broad coalition of Canadian organizations representing people living with disabilities. “If Canada’s healthcare system becomes overburdened by COVID-19, most triaging guidelines will result in people with disabilities being denied care, triaged out of care solely on the basis of having a disability. “
Press release: The Council of Canadians with Disabilities reminds all levels of government, community organizations and businesses responding to the COVID-19 crisis that all planning needs to be done using a human and disability rights lens.
We rightly hear a lot about the COVID-19 related risks faced by people incarcerated in Nova Scotia’s jails and prisons. What is more or less forgotten is that the 800 to 900 citizens labeled as living with disabilities who live in institutions in this province are facing the very same risks.
PSA: Join us for a screening of Ombline, a gripping film by French director Stéphane Cazes that captures the experiences of a pregnant woman who is incarcerated and then keeps her child with her, followed by a discussion about the context in Canada.