Open full screen The Résidence Louise-Vachon in Laval is a rehabilitation center for intellectual disabilities and pervasive developmental disorders. Employees of the Résidence Louise-Vachon, a center specializing in intellectual disabilities and pervasive developmental disorders, allegedly dipped for a year from the bank accounts of residents without supporting documents, reveals an internal investigation by the Integrated Health and Services Center (CISSS) de Laval. Radio-Canada has learned that for one year, from April 2022 to March 2023, employees of Résidence Louise-Vachon would have disbursed approximately $41,000 directly from residents' accounts, without an invoice or other document to justify it. In principle, employees can have access to user accounts for current expenses, under certain conditions. We noted that money outflows, not accompanied by proof of purchases, were made in the trust accounts of around twenty residents, explains the spokesperson for the CISSS de Laval, Marie- Ève Despatie-Gagnon. The spokesperson specifies that all users will be reimbursed in full. None of the employees involved are now employed by the CISSS de Laval […] and we are evaluating whether legal steps will be taken against the people concerned.
Let's say that there were irregularities noted and each time we lift a rock, we discover something, notes the president of the Users' Committee of the CISSS de Laval, Pierre Lynch.
From the point of view of users and families, I find it wise to reimburse now in order to preserve the credibility of the adjustments set up.
A quote from Pierre Lynch, president of the Committee; of users of the CISSS de Laval
The manager has our complete trust and is implementing the recommendations submitted this summer by the consultants, underlines Pierre Lynch .
Last August, another report noted “mistreatment and neglect” at Résidence Louise-Vachon.< /p>
Consultants hired by the CISSS de Laval had drawn up a series of 150 recommendations to eliminate mistreatment and neglect of the center's residents.
There is indeed a finding of abuse/neglect […] in particular injuries during physical interventions carried out too quickly and not respecting the protocols in force, unexplained injuries, they wrote in the report revealed in August by Radio- Canada.
Faced with the new report on financial abuse, lawyer Patrick Martin-Ménard is stunned to see that another wave of irregularities hit the establishment.
It’s dismaying to see that four years later, we find ourselves with situations not only of systemic mistreatment, but in addition, we are now talking about financial abuse, says the lawyer. The latter is leading a request for collective action against the CISSS de Laval for actions allegedly committed at the Résidence Louise-Vachon from 2012 to 2019.
Christine Morin, full professor at the Faculty of Law at Laval University, finds it difficult to explain why such a situation could have arisen in the public network.
How did employees make these withdrawals (powers of attorney, fake checks, etc.)? How were they able to withdraw so much money before someone intervened?
A quote from Christine Morin, full professor à the Faculty of law from the University Laval
According to her, it is obvious that communities must be more proactive to prevent such situations and intervene more quickly.
Ms. Morin is a member of the Committee for the Protection and Representation of Incapacitated or Protected Persons of the Curateur public du Québec, appointed by the Minister of Families, as well as a member of the Committee advisory on material and financial mistreatment of seniors, set up by the Secrétariat aux vins.
Résidence Louise-Vachon in Laval is at the center of a request for collective action for alleged acts of mistreatment since 2012.
At the CISSS de Laval, we believe we have been proactive and we specify that we are working to set up training for employees with regard to the management of user property hosted.
As the new deputy director of intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorders, Yann Desbiens, explained in August, there are people with good hearts who work at the Louise-Vachon Residence […] that we need to train better and for that, we will very quickly put in place people who will support people during their shifts.
Résidence Louise-Vachon has the capacity to accommodate 42 people, including 16 with a serious behavioral disorder (TGC) and 26 residents with multiple disabilities requiring care. health.
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