In a nutshell, the CSIL Program allows a physically disabled person in BC to choose between Island Health home care or private home care. The CSIL programs intentions are well meaning, however, the application process is antiquated and far too onerous for your average physically disabled person, such as myself. CSIL is intended to give a person more independence than what IHA is able to provide, and once accepted into the CSIL program, the applicant is given the funds to manage their own home care…so a CSIL applicant is expected to become an employer, have book keeping skills, have a back-up team consisting of care givers, family and friends.

I propose to scrap the CSIL program completely and replace it with a system by which a physically disabled person who is receiving home care from IHA, wants to switch to a private home care company. That person can do so by merely calling their Case Manager to say they want to switch. The Case Manager can work with the client or clients family to choose a private home care company. Once a company is chosen, they visit the client and determine the needs, then the private home care company can contact the Case Manager to set up direct billing with IHA (Island Health). Direct billing is the key here. This would achieve the same result except without the day to day stress one the person receiving home care.

The other HUGE benefit is this:

The more people who sign up for private home care, the better off IHA home care workers are…the overall case loads will decrease, making an IHA home care worker less busy and therefore less stressed. As it is now, IHA clients and home care workers are frustrated and stressed out. Having less clients, IHA home care workers will have more time to help their clients, instead of having to rush through client visits, leaving a client perhaps with a bag of garbage needing to be taken out, or recycling piling up, or a bathtub needing to cleaned after a bath, etc.

Scrapping the CSIL PROGRAM is a positive move, and will benefit any one of the approximately 685,000 physically disabled persons in British Columbia, or 15% of our Population.

The picture is of The Hon. Adrian Dix, BC Minister of Health. Mr. Dix is a fantastic listener and this petition is one I’m sure he will appreciate hearing about, and working with us to scrap the CSIL program and replace it with direct billing.

Please sign this petition. The more freedom and independence a person with a physical disability gains, the happier and healthier they become. I’m living proof.

Thank you.