Health and social services - Failure in rehabilitation services for a person with intellectual disabilities

The sister of the complainant experienced a failure of services after being transferred from an intermediate resource of a rehabilitation centre for intellectual disabilities (CRDI) to a residential and long-term care centre.

The user in question had a profound intellectual disability and received learning retention services from the CRDI. According to her sister, the CHSLD was not offering the user the necessary stimulation and the person was visibly losing abilities each day.

The citizen’s complaint concerned:

• the breakdown of the continuity of rehabilitation services following her sister’s transfer to a CHSLD.

The Québec Ombudsman’s investigation revealed that:

• the Act respecting health services and social services stipulates that every institution must "ensure that its services are provided in continuity and complementarity with those provided by the other institutions and resources of the region";
• over the course of the past year, the user had been hospitalized a number of times for various medical problems, especially aspiration pneumonia. In the opinion of the professionals involved in the case, her state of health had deteriorated little by little following each hospitalization;
• an assessment concluded that the user no longer had enough autonomy to remain in a family-type resource and it was suggested that she be transferred to a CHSLD;
• the assessment report revealed certain impairments, such as minor behavioural problems, mobility problems with risk for falls, and life habits that require constant supervision of the user;
• the assessment tool used was not designed specifically for persons with moderate to severe intellectual impairments;
• the intermediate resource where the user lived did not have the human resources needed to offer suitable services for a person with this type of physical and intellectual disability;
• in the six weeks after the user’s transfer, an educator from the CRDI worked with her a few days a week to help her adjust to her new environment. After this, the adaptation and learning retention services provided by the CRDI ended;
• an individualized service plan would enable the user’s special needs to be met.

The Québec Ombudsman recommended that the rehabilitation centre:

• call a meeting, as soon as possible, of all the partners involved in determining the services delivered to the user in order to develop and implement an individualized service plan that provides the required services and ensures the necessary coordination and joint action.

The rehabilitation centre accepted and acted on the Québec Ombudsman’s recommendation.  One of the outcomes is that the user will attend the meetings held at the CRDI.