Inquest rules B.C. woman’s starvation death a homicide, calls for oversight, funding

An inquest into the decease of a pistillate with Down syndrome who died portion surviving successful a caretaker’s location has concluded her decease was a homicide, and that she died of starvation and malnutrition.

The inquest has heard that Girard was recovered dormant successful Astrid Dahl’s Port Coquitlam location successful October 2018. She weighed conscionable 50.6 pounds erstwhile she died and mislaid astir 50 pounds successful the 3 months earlier she died, the inquest heard.

The 54-year-old with Down syndrome had lived nether a residential home-sharing statement with Dahl for astir 8 years, an statement overseen by Kinsight Community Society, a non-profit contracted by Crown corp Community Living B.C.

Dahl was subsequently convicted of failing to supply the necessaries of beingness successful Girard’s death.

More oversight, much backing recommended

Coroners inquests are fact-finding exercises and bash not measure fault. However, they are empowered to marque recommendations aimed astatine preventing akin deaths successful the future.

On Friday, a five-member coroner’s assemblage delivered 13 recommendations — 11 of them for Community Living B.C.

The jury’s apical proposal called connected CLBC to make a lawsuit absorption strategy to supply oversight connected the aesculapian prime of beingness for everyone successful its care.

It besides called for fiscal enactment to guarantee household members tin attraction for their loved ones successful the aforesaid mode a home-share supplier does if they choose, and to “immediately” and annually boost the fiscal enactment home-share attraction providers and coordinators get.

The assemblage further recommended accrued backing to declaration home-share coordinator agencies to trim the fig of patients nether 1 coordinator’s care, and to guarantee coordinating agencies measure the capableness of radical successful their attraction and person powerfulness of lawyer wherever necessary.

CLBC should besides execute random, risk-based assessments and well-being check-ins astatine home-shares, and supply ongoing paid grooming for home-share providers, the assemblage said.

The assemblage made 2 recommendations to the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction.

It called for the state to instantly reinstate a aesculapian advisor presumption astatine CLBC, and to instantly trim hold times for clients to entree wellness attraction plans.

Inquest testimony

The inquest heard from 18 witnesses, including B.C.’s advocator for work prime who said home-share providers are facing exhaustion, burnout and are perpetually successful “crisis mode.”

Cary Chiu testified radical offering attraction successful their homes for radical with developmental disabilities request to beryllium paid much to guarantee the integrity of the programme and revitalize the prime of its excavation of providers.

Dahl told the inquest she received astir $2,000 a period from the home-share programme to attraction for Girard arsenic good arsenic immoderate wealth to wage for respite if she needed help.

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Dahl testified to being successful “denial” astir Girard’s condition, telling the inquest erstwhile the pistillate began losing value she thought she would bounce backmost if she could instrumentality attraction of her.

She further testified that Girard hated going to the doc and dentist, and would person a “meltdown” up of appointments. Girard, she said, had the close to garbage to go.

She said she told Kinsight astir what was going connected but she was doing what she thought was champion for Girard.

“Now, I privation I could spell backmost successful clip and bash it differently,” Dahl testified.

“I was stuck successful a loop of not knowing what to do. No 1 other offered to assistance maine find a solution.”

The inquest heard that Girard hadn’t seen a doc for 4 years earlier she died.

Community Living B.C. manager Lisa Evans told the inquest each of its clients should beryllium seeing a doc annually.

But the inquest heard the bureau does not person the quality to cheque whether its clients had really had those visits.

The inquest besides heard B.C.’s auditor wide had reviewed CLBC successful 2021, authoring a scathing study astir gaps astatine the agency.

The province’s adjunct lawman curate of societal improvement and poorness absorption acknowledged “significant gaps” successful CLBC’s oversight framework, but said “many” of them had been addressed.

Girard’s sister Sharon Bursey has said she wants a afloat audit of CLBC and Kinsight.

More to come…