Oversight ordered at Shalom Village assisted living apartments for seniors

The city has ordered Shalom Village to license its assisted living apartments for seniors as a residential care facility.

Until now, the 81 apartments in Westdale have been operating without the municipal oversight that goes with that licence, including inspections to ensure appropriate resident care as well as environmental health and safety conditions.

The non-profit organization has until Aug. 31 to start the process of getting licensed after a complaint triggered an investigation by the city. Leadership at Shalom Village did not answers questions about the order despite repeated requests from The Spectator.

I raised the alarm because that's the right thing everybody should have done already way, way, way long ago," said Marie Tattersall, who has no connection to the home but became aware of the apartments at Shalom Village through social media and lodged a complaint with the city on June 17.

There are numerous of these scattered across the province," she said about seniors' apartments in general. They've fallen into a complete gap with no oversight, no standards of care assured, no access to a complaint process."

It's an issue that has been prioritized by the Retirement Homes Regulatory Authority (RHRA). The regulator has identified 231 Ontario properties requiring an inspection to determine whether they should apply for a licence to operate as a retirement home. So far, RHRA has assessed 225 of them, but only six were issued orders under the Retirement Homes Act.

The regulator said in a statement that there are a number of exceptions to the definition of retirement home in the act, particularly in relation to provincial funding programs carried out at homes and the kinds of funding used to subsidize programs carried out at the premises."

Shalom Village appears to fall under these exceptions, said the RHRA, which conducted its own inspection of the apartments at 70 Macklin St. N. The apartments are separate from Shalom Village's 127-bed long-term-care home that is regulated by Ontario's Ministry of Long-Term Care.

The information RHRA has so far gathered indicates that this facility is not a retirement home under the Retirement Homes Act," the regulator stated about the apartments. RHRA is continuing to seek clarification."

The Advocacy Centre for the Elderly said the act is not clear when it comes to seniors' apartments.

It is a fairly common situation for there to be some ambiguity as to whether a congregate-living facility should need a retirement home licence or not," said Graham Webb, executive director of the Ontario legal clinic and advocacy centre.

He said a licensed retirement home has important benefits for seniors.

The RHRA does provide oversight," he said. They're very much concerned with resident safety and security. They provide another avenue for retirement home tenants to turn to if things aren't going right."

However, being a retirement home is not necessary to being declared a residential care facility by the city.

In Hamilton, these facilities are defined simply as buildings where people live to receive 24-hour care services." It doesn't matter if receiving care is the primary purpose of living there, and it can be as few as four people. The designation includes homes that assist Hamiltonians with developmental disabilities and mental-health issues as well as seniors.

In fact, there is an added layer of oversight when a residential care facility is not also licensed as a retirement home. In that case, registered nurse inspectors check for appropriate resident care.

All facilities are checked for environmental health and safety conditions by public health inspectors.

The city encourages residents to confidentially report issues around cleanliness, food quality, fire safety, health and safety, infestations or maintenance.

The city said in a statement that it issued a notice of noncompliance to Shalom Village on July 15 after concluding its investigation.

Staff identified the need for a City of Hamilton licence based on the inspection of the current operation and use," stated the city. Additional inspections will take place by both licensing and public health."

Sponsored content published April 1 by The Spectator stated that Shalom Village was founded by the Jewish community and welcomed its first residents in 1980.

The one- and two-bedroom apartments include a kosher dinner, weekly housekeeping, and a number of on-site services and activities. Trainers develop custom fitness plans and staff members visit residents twice daily to help with medications and ensure all is well. Nurses and personal support workers are available 24-7 for emergencies.

The advertising said the organization's values are for seniors to be cared for with respect and compassion.

Joanna Frketich is a health reporter at The Spectator. jfrketich@thespec.com