{"id":262800,"date":"2022-02-17T08:48:06","date_gmt":"2022-02-17T14:48:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=262800"},"modified":"2022-02-16T14:26:45","modified_gmt":"2022-02-16T20:26:45","slug":"british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/","title":{"rendered":"British Columbia disability advocates fear new care model will hurt, not help, children in need"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

A firestorm has erupted in British Columbia among families of children with special needs and the organizations that advocate and provide services for them.<\/p>\n

The controversy centers on a plan announced in October 2021 by the provincial government’s Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) to create a “community hub model” of “family connection centres” to meet the needs of children with disabilities. The hub model represents a massive overhaul of the Children and Youth with Support Needs (CYSN) framework currently in place.\u00a0Both parents and advocacy organizations appear in agreement that at present the CYSN framework is in serious need of changes; however, they feel that the proposed solutions are sorely lacking.<\/p>\n

A press release<\/a> from disability advocacy organization Representative for Children and Youth (RCY) cites a lengthy laundry list of the problems with CYSN, including “lengthy and growing wait lists for assessments and diagnoses,\u00a0lack of access to assessments and quality care in many communities, lack of timely developmental supports\u00a0to enable young people to thrive, lack of wrap-around support and resources for families who are\u00a0endeavouring to meet the exceptional needs of their children, discriminatory screening and referral patterns,\u00a0and inequity in services provided depending on a child\u2019s diagnosis.”<\/p>\n

READ:<\/strong>\u00a0Mom says children with special needs should be treated like people, not puzzles<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

RCY appreciates the new model’s emphasis on providing services to children who may not yet have an official diagnosis, since diagnoses can take years to secure. And, while qualifying families currently receive a set amount of money to use for services as they see fit, Glen Hoos, spokesperson for Down Syndrome Resource Foundation and father of a child with both autism and Down syndrome, noted<\/a> that some families of children with special needs may want the overarching coordination of all aspects of care promised by the new model.\u00a0He agrees with some of the stated goals for the new community hub model, saying, “The desire to make funding equal for all disabilities is positive, as is a desire for kids in all geographic areas to have the same access.”<\/p>\n

But, he adds, “[MCFD’s]\u00a0proposed solution totally misses the mark.”<\/p>\n

A letter<\/a> dated December 3, 2021, addressed to the MCFD and signed by representatives of 34 British Columbia disability organizations decried “an acute lack of meaningful engagement and collaboration” in the planning phases of the new model. The letter further alleged an ongoing “lack of transparency about the changes” as well as a failure by MCFD to make clear just how the changes represent an improvement<\/em> over the old system, multiple MCFD-run “information sessions” notwithstanding.<\/p>\n

The letter writers insisted that any proposed changes to the old CYSN framework should be based on “flexibility, choice, equity, access, cultural safety, trauma-informed practices, empowerment, and dignity.” And whereas they advocate “for families to have agency and autonomy over the services their children receive and the supports they need,” they consider the new community hubs model, which would take effect in 2025, a one-size-fits-all approach lacking the necessary specialization to meet the needs of children with various disabilities.<\/p>\n

Both the letter writers and Representative for Children and Youth also noted the conspicuous lack of mention of increased service providers under the new model. The letter gave specifics on the types of service providers needed, which include “pediatricians, speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, psychologists,” and “behaviour analysts.” The Representative for Children and Youth press release asked pointedly,\u00a0“how\u00a0will even more families be served without more money and resources being put into a system that is already\u00a0very under-resourced?”<\/p>\n

Both the letter and Representative for Children and Youth called on the Ministry of Child and Family Development to develop short-term solutions that address needs ahead of the 2025 roll-out date and to involve relevant stakeholders in any and all decision-making moving forward.<\/p>\n

\u201cLike\u201d Live Action News on Facebook<\/a>\u00a0for more pro-life news and commentary!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A firestorm has erupted in British Columbia among families of children with special needs and the organizations that advocate and provide services for them. The controversy centers on a plan announced in October 2021 by the provincial government’s Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) to create a “community hub model” of “family connection centres” […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":635,"featured_media":237140,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false},"categories":[2793,3473],"tags":[1308,15836,15837,15838,1370],"yoast_head":"\nBritish Columbia disability advocates fear new care model will hurt, not help, children in need<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"British Columbia is looking to change its care model for people with special needs -- and disability advocates and families aren't happy.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"British Columbia disability advocates fear new care model will hurt, not help, children in need\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"British Columbia is looking to change its care model for people with special needs -- and disability advocates and families aren't happy.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Live Action News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/liveaction\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-02-17T14:48:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-02-16T20:26:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/GettyImages-1178291191.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2121\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1414\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@liveaction\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@liveaction\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/48e3f680e24f898411f4ea650018e01b\"},\"headline\":\"British Columbia disability advocates fear new care model will hurt, not help, children in need\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-02-17T14:48:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-02-16T20:26:45+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/\"},\"wordCount\":655,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"British Columbia\",\"disability advocates\",\"Ministry of Children and Family Development\",\"Representative for Children and Youth\",\"special needs\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Activism\",\"Newsbreak\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/\",\"name\":\"British Columbia disability advocates fear new care model will hurt, not help, children in need\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2022-02-17T14:48:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-02-16T20:26:45+00:00\",\"description\":\"British Columbia is looking to change its care model for people with special needs -- and disability advocates and families aren't happy.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"British Columbia disability advocates fear new care model will hurt, not help, children in need\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/\",\"name\":\"Live Action News\",\"description\":\"Covering Human Rights, Abortion, & Pro-Life Issues\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Live Action\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/Live-Action-Logo-Black.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/Live-Action-Logo-Black.png\",\"width\":701,\"height\":710,\"caption\":\"Live Action\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/liveaction\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/liveaction\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/liveactionorg\/\",\"https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/LiveActionFilms\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/LiveActionFilms\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/48e3f680e24f898411f4ea650018e01b\",\"name\":\"Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/27753e50a006dd85ec60e2a77e6c6a52?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/27753e50a006dd85ec60e2a77e6c6a52?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN\"},\"description\":\"Anne Marie Williams is a mom of five with 10 years of nursing experience, primarily in the ICU setting. Her writing advocates for an approach to women's health that respects and supports the female body and fertility, and educates on the harms of hormonal birth control. She hosts a postpartum podcast to help other moms experience postpartum as a time of grit, growth, and grace.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/author\/anne-marie-williams\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"British Columbia disability advocates fear new care model will hurt, not help, children in need","description":"British Columbia is looking to change its care model for people with special needs -- and disability advocates and families aren't happy.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"British Columbia disability advocates fear new care model will hurt, not help, children in need","og_description":"British Columbia is looking to change its care model for people with special needs -- and disability advocates and families aren't happy.","og_url":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/","og_site_name":"Live Action News","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/liveaction","article_published_time":"2022-02-17T14:48:06+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-02-16T20:26:45+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2121,"height":1414,"url":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/GettyImages-1178291191.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@liveaction","twitter_site":"@liveaction","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/"},"author":{"name":"Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN","@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/48e3f680e24f898411f4ea650018e01b"},"headline":"British Columbia disability advocates fear new care model will hurt, not help, children in need","datePublished":"2022-02-17T14:48:06+00:00","dateModified":"2022-02-16T20:26:45+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/"},"wordCount":655,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#organization"},"keywords":["British Columbia","disability advocates","Ministry of Children and Family Development","Representative for Children and Youth","special needs"],"articleSection":["Activism","Newsbreak"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/","url":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/","name":"British Columbia disability advocates fear new care model will hurt, not help, children in need","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#website"},"datePublished":"2022-02-17T14:48:06+00:00","dateModified":"2022-02-16T20:26:45+00:00","description":"British Columbia is looking to change its care model for people with special needs -- and disability advocates and families aren't happy.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/british-columbia-disability-advocates-fear-care-model\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"British Columbia disability advocates fear new care model will hurt, not help, children in need"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/","name":"Live Action News","description":"Covering Human Rights, Abortion, & Pro-Life Issues","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#organization","name":"Live Action","url":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/Live-Action-Logo-Black.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/Live-Action-Logo-Black.png","width":701,"height":710,"caption":"Live Action"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/liveaction","https:\/\/twitter.com\/liveaction","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/liveactionorg\/","https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/LiveActionFilms\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/LiveActionFilms"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/48e3f680e24f898411f4ea650018e01b","name":"Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/27753e50a006dd85ec60e2a77e6c6a52?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/27753e50a006dd85ec60e2a77e6c6a52?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN"},"description":"Anne Marie Williams is a mom of five with 10 years of nursing experience, primarily in the ICU setting. Her writing advocates for an approach to women's health that respects and supports the female body and fertility, and educates on the harms of hormonal birth control. She hosts a postpartum podcast to help other moms experience postpartum as a time of grit, growth, and grace.","url":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/author\/anne-marie-williams\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/262800"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/635"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=262800"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/262800\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":262877,"href":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/262800\/revisions\/262877"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/237140"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=262800"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=262800"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=262800"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}