Notable improvement: all CHSLD residents can now claim an air conditioner
All residents in residential and long-term care centres (CHSLDs) can request an air conditioner in their room, which is a clear improvement compared to the last 10 years, even if the deadlines can sometimes differ.
This is what the Quebec Association of Retirees in the Public and Parapublic Sectors (AQRP) noted in a survey made public on Monday.
Thus, all integrated health and social services centres (CISSSs) in the province are able to donate private air conditioners to those who request them, with rare exceptions due to problems with the electrical capacity of the system.
This is particularly the case at the CIUSSS du Nord-de-l'Île-de-Montréal, where 50 applications were refused for this reason in 2024, and at the CIUSSS de la Capitale-Nationale with 10 applications that were not accepted.
"Our association is pleased to see that all residents who request it can have an air-conditioned room," said the provincial president of the AQRP, Paul-René Roy, recalling that seniors are vulnerable to heat waves.
When the association began cataloguing this data 10 years ago, only 8% of CHSLD rooms were air-conditioned. There are more than 60% now," he explained in an interview with LCN on Monday.
However, installation times for a private air conditioner were noted depending on the region. While it can take a maximum of 24 hours at CIUSSS West-Central Montreal, the delay can reach up to a month at CIUSSS de la Capitale-Nationale.
"Usually, the delays are quite short in all CHSLDs in Quebec, but it is unacceptable for us that residents wait up to a month after making their request for an installation to obtain an air conditioner," said Mr. Roy.
The CISSSs of the Côte-Nord and Abitibi-Témiscamingue regions are also those with the fewest air-conditioned individual rooms, with 25% and 35% respectively in 2024. This situation can be explained by the rarity of heat waves in these two regions, according to the AQRP.
This is what the Quebec Association of Retirees in the Public and Parapublic Sectors (AQRP) noted in a survey made public on Monday.
Thus, all integrated health and social services centres (CISSSs) in the province are able to donate private air conditioners to those who request them, with rare exceptions due to problems with the electrical capacity of the system.
This is particularly the case at the CIUSSS du Nord-de-l'Île-de-Montréal, where 50 applications were refused for this reason in 2024, and at the CIUSSS de la Capitale-Nationale with 10 applications that were not accepted.
"Our association is pleased to see that all residents who request it can have an air-conditioned room," said the provincial president of the AQRP, Paul-René Roy, recalling that seniors are vulnerable to heat waves.
When the association began cataloguing this data 10 years ago, only 8% of CHSLD rooms were air-conditioned. There are more than 60% now," he explained in an interview with LCN on Monday.
However, installation times for a private air conditioner were noted depending on the region. While it can take a maximum of 24 hours at CIUSSS West-Central Montreal, the delay can reach up to a month at CIUSSS de la Capitale-Nationale.
"Usually, the delays are quite short in all CHSLDs in Quebec, but it is unacceptable for us that residents wait up to a month after making their request for an installation to obtain an air conditioner," said Mr. Roy.
The CISSSs of the Côte-Nord and Abitibi-Témiscamingue regions are also those with the fewest air-conditioned individual rooms, with 25% and 35% respectively in 2024. This situation can be explained by the rarity of heat waves in these two regions, according to the AQRP.
