Sue Hammel is issuing a direct challenge to B.C. Health Minister Terry Lake: take a tour of Mountain View Home.
“I don’t think the minister could walk through this facility, meet the people here, and still believe a place like this should ever be closed,” the NDP critic for mental health said.
When asked why the licenced mental-health-care facility was slated to close in 2016, Lake responded by saying, “the days of locking people up with mental illness are over. We need to offer a broader array of supports and that is what Fraser Health is doing.”
READ MORE: Growing mental health concerns across Fraser Health Authority region
Global News got an exclusive glimpse of what life is like inside the 25-bed facility that offers round-the-clock nursing care and support.
Clients say the care they receive gives them a sense of security without compromising their freedom.
“When I come into a facility like this I don’t feel oppressed in any way. I don’t see any locked doors,” Hammell said.
READ MORE: Aging parents fear for schizophrenic sons caught in Fraser Valley mental health facility cuts
Still, the number of licenced mental health beds is dropping. In 2006, Fraser Health had 647 licenced beds. Today, there are 544.
Families say some of these clients can’t live anywhere else.
“I fear for all the residents here what will happen when they have to be dismissed from this place and go to another facility because it’s breaking up a family,” said Adelaide Epp, the grandmother of a Mountain View client.
-With files from John Hua
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