Wait Times

From the time you are approved for admission, wait times may vary from one personal care home to the next, depending on the people presently living in the home and the number of applicants. It is our practice not to give out wait times due to the variability and unpredictability of spaces becoming available. While most personal care homes use the Panel date to determine the order of admission, there are situations when certain cases must be given priority due to safety considerations. Our approach is to be as fair and equitable as possible.

Once you have received a confirmation that you are on a waiting list, you may contact the personal care home with any general questions to help you prepare. Until you move in, please continue to contact your case coordinator or hospital staff for questions related to your care plan.

Interim Placement

A Southern Health-Santé Sud Interim Placement Policy helps to ensure hospital beds remain accessible for people who are very ill. This policy reflects that if you are ‘panelled’ and waiting in a hospital to move into a personal care home (due to safety considerations), you may be required to wait in another health facility within Southern Health-Santé Sud – one which was not selected as your main choices. When appropriate, this will be discussed with you and arranged by the health care team.

Changing my Choice of Personal Care Home

If, during the wait time for admission, you have a change of mind regarding the priority of choice of personal care home in Southern Health-Santé Sud, please contact the case coordinator. You or your substitute decision-maker will be required to sign a form confirming the change in choice and the new chosen personal care home will review your application.

When your Personal Care Home Room becomes Available

Once you receive notice that a room is available for you to move into the personal care home (regardless of whether it is a first or second choice), you will have one (1) working day to respond. If you accept, a move-in date will be chosen (within three (3) working days of the offer) unless there are special circumstances. If you do not reply to the offer within one (1) working day, it will be considered a refusal and the offer will be made to next person on the waiting list.

If you refuse the offer to live in a personal care home, your name is removed from all personal care home wait lists. Your application may be reactivated within six (6) months’ time by your case coordinator, in consultation with his/her manager. The date your application is reactivated becomes the new panel date to determine the order of admission.

If you are currently receiving home care services, Manitoba Health has established a maximum number of hours of care that program can provide to each client. This is referred to as the ‘service limit’. If you are receiving home care services that are above this limit and you refuse personal care admission, your home care services will be decreased to the service limit. This decrease will occur within ten working days of the refusal date.

If you are currently in a hospital or health centre waiting to move to a personal care home and refuse the offer for admission to personal care home, the hospital or health centre will charge you the current daily per diem rate in accordance with The Manitoba Health Services Insurance Act, Regulation 48/93 (Hospital Services Insurance and Administration), Section 7.1(2) which changes yearly.

These parameters exist to ensure that the most appropriate care is made available based on the population needs and resources available.