Hospitals Can Now Move Patients to Nursing Homes Without Consent

 

Hospitals across Ontario can now start to move discharged patients waiting for long term care into nursing homes, even without the consent of the patient.

A new law will allow hospitals to send patients to homes up to 70 kilometers away in southern Ontario and 150 in northern areas on a temporary basis.

This has seen some approval from hospitals as the move attempts to ease pressures on hospitals.

Among those applauding the move is Huron-Perth Healthcare Alliance CEO Andrew Williams but adds the move will not immediately help his facility as he says there are no empty long term care beds in the region.

Williams adds he doesn’t see the new law being used in the short term locally.