WATCH: A meeting between WorkSafeBC officials and a Chilliwack man who lost his hands in a workplace accident leads to a resolution over concerns about reduced home care support.
It took more than two months of fighting, a heart-wrenching letter from a 12-year-old and media coverage to get two WorkSafeBC executives to the Atleo family’s front door.
The visit came after WorkSafeBC cut Taras Atleo’s homecare from seven days a week to the equivalent of seven days a month, less than a year after the 45-year-old lost both his hands in an electrical accident on the job at a BC Hydro substation.
“They apologized to us,” said wife Lorena Atleo. “It felt like we were talking to a completely different organization.”
The reduction in support forced Atleo’s family to help him with everything from taking his medication to brushing his teeth.
“With the perspective I gained today, he wasn’t as far long in the rehabilitation as we had thought,” said WorkSafeBC’s Todd McDonald.
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“We probably had a failing on the communication side. That two-way communication wasn’t in place.”
WATCH: A 12-year-old girl makes an emotional plea for help
But communication may not have been the only problem. The meeting revealed Atleo’s assessment may have been based on an outdated model.
“The director said that this was based on the model that they had when women used to stay home and take care of their husbands,” said Lorena.
Since sharing their story and hearing countless others, the family says one thing about WorkSafeBC is very clear.
“The system that’s currently in place is not working, it’s not supporting families,” said Lorena. “In fact, rather than help us move forward it’s pushing us back in the other direction.”
While the Atleos wait for a proper home assessment, they were reunited with a home care support worker.
Atleo says he appreciates “any help that I can get to get me back to where I contribute more to my family and feel better about myself.”
-With files from John Hua and Paula Baker
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