Page - 330 - in VULNERABLE - The Law, Policy and Ethics of COVID-19

VULNERABLE330 qu’il semble clair que l’absence d’un financement adéquat soit l’une des causes du problème, le portrait des conditions de travail, des enjeux et des problématiques auxquels sont confrontés les CSLD depuis de nom- breuses années suggèrent que les attitudes sociétales envers le vieillis- sement, particulièrement envers les personnes les plus âgées et les plus vulnérables, sont peut-être la véritable pierre angulaire du problème. Abstract COVID-19 and ageism: a predictable crisis in long-term care centres and an impromptu response? In Canada, the COVID-19 crisis has hit residents of long-term care centres hard. A very high number of seniors have passed away in these facilities, often in deplorable conditions. How did we end up here? Was this disaster not preventable? This chapter addresses these issues and suggests that one of the causes of this predicament is age- ism, which is the stereotyping of individuals based on their age and the discrimination that ensues. After defining ageism and exploring its effects and consequences, the text delves into certain well-known challenges and problems of long-term care facilities: the advanced age of residents, their comorbidity, the precarious work environments health-care personnel face, and the lack of proper personal protective equipment. Overall, the COVID-19 health crisis has helped expose a troubling reality: the most vulnerable seniors live in environments where personal support workers are overworked and underpaid, and where their specialized skills are neither recognized nor valued. While it may seem obvious that a lack of adequate funding is one of the causes of the problem, a look at long-term care facilities’ work- ing conditions, challenges, and concerns over the years suggests that societal attitudes on aging, particularly regarding our oldest and most vulnerable citizens, are possibly the true root of the problem. Au jour du 2 mai 2020, au plus fort de la crise sanitaire au Canada, l’Ontario comptait un total de 17  553 cas de COVID-19, dont 2  488 (14 %) dans les centres de soins de longue durée (CSLD)1. Des 1. Les centres de soins de longue durée réfèrent aux établissements où résident des personnes nécessitant des soins continus et un soutien personnel pour la réalisa- tion des activités quotidiennes.