Inadequate Services for FASD

November 23, 2006

Focus on Children and FASD

It came as no surprise that the Official Opposition refused to allow the Campbell government to get away with a one day legislative sitting and only one question period. Campbell promised a legislative calendar with a seven week sitting in the Fall; that promise seems to have gone the way of open cabinet meetings.

Thanks to Hansard, it is possible not only to get quick access to a written transcript of every word spoken in BC's Legislature, but it is also possible with the click of a mouse to see streaming video of the debate. That allows viewers to watch Solicitor General John Les squirm uncomfortably in his seat throughout NDP Leader Carole James' comparison of what he said in November 2005 compared to what was learned from government documents obtained under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

At the first opportunity since the legislature adjourned on May 18, James raised a point of privilege and quoted from one of the government documents when she said: "The Coroners Service outlined for the government the implications of this: 'Despite a public commitment to review 100 percent of child deaths, approximately 40 percent of child deaths may not be reported to the B.C. Coroners Service. Necessary multidisciplinary reviews into preventable child deaths might not be conducted.' In other words, because the coroner lacked the legislative authority it required, it might not be able to conduct adequate reviews that could offer recommendations that would help prevent further child deaths." That appears to contradict what Les told the Legislature on November 15, 2005, when he said: "We have the chief coroner of the province, who independently can enter into any appropriate investigations relating to child deaths in British Columbia."

Don't hold your breath waiting for the Speaker of the Legislature to rule that a prima facie case of a breach of privilege has been made that requires a legislative committee to delve into the breach and what consequences should flow from it. In the BC Legislature the Speaker almost always finds a way to rule in favour of the government. In this case it isn't hard to find wiggle words like "appropriate". Section 9 of the Coroner's Act specifies when deaths must be reported to a police officer or coroner. On November 17, 2005 Les indicated that he was aware that the coroner wouldn't investigate all deaths when he said: "These children's deaths have all been competently and professionally reviewed either by the chief coroner carrying out his appropriate responsibilities as he always does or by medical professionals in the cases where those deaths occurred in an expected and natural way." He could have added that medical professionals may be engaging in a little guess work when they sign death certificates, and that the number of autopsies has dramatically declined, but he didn't since he was trying to argue that all deaths are reviewed. Nevertheless, the speaker will probably find those wiggle words sufficient to deny that Les misled the House.

Les' escape from a Legislative reprimand should not be seen as a loss for the Official Opposition. On the eve of the appointment of Saskatchewan Provincial Court Judge Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond as BC's first "Child and Youth Representative", the Opposition succeeded in drawing media attention to the issue of bungled investigations into child deaths. Some might even notice that on November 17, 2005, Les said: "There is no need for the Children's Commission to be reinstated, but we are open to advice from the Hughes review that has already been commissioned by this government in terms of any improvements that might be made to the child-death review process." Events proved Les wrong.

In his discussion of Turpel-Lafond's pending appointment, Sean Holman of Public Eye Online wrote that she has been a strong advocate for those with fetal alcohol syndrome (FASD). Her interest in doing something about the neglect of those with FASD fits well with recent advice from both the BC Progress Board and from the Child and Youth Advocate.

November 18, 2006

Inadequate Services for FASD

"Clearly, existing health and social services that address childhood development issues are not adequate at this time."
BC Progress Board, November 15, 2006, p. viii

The BC Progress Board's latest report, "Reducing Crime and Improving Criminal Justice in British Columbia: Recommendation for Change", prepared by Dr. Robert M. Gordon and Dr. J. Bryan Kinney, School of Criminology, Simon Fraser University, has received media attention because it said that the provincial government should either lobby the Federal Government to legalize the illegal drug trade or it should provide the resources necessary to eliminate the trade entirely in the province. The realism of either alternative raises questions as to what the Board or its scribes may have been smoking.

The Progress Board's Report implicitly condemned the Campbell government. On the issue of the drug trade, it said: "The status quo, of course, is another option, but this is clearly not acceptable if we seek to truly reduce the rates of crime and victimization in the province." Media coverage of the Report did not mention Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) but in its fourth recommendation the Report mentioned FASD repeatedly before saying: "The province needs a system of early detection of children with problems, not just FASD related problems, through the elementary school system, and appropriately coordinated early intervention strategies and services provided by the Ministries of Health and Children and Family Development."

The BC Progress Board has its offices on the top floor of the Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre, immediately adjacent to the Premier's Vancouver Cabinet Office. A recommendation from the Board has influence. An observation from the Board that the status quo is not acceptable and "health and social services that address childhood development issues are not adequate at this time" deserves headlines, but they didn't get a single mention in the media.

The Progress Board's condemnation of the Campbell government's lack of progress came just a week after Children and Youth Officer, Jane Morley, released a report with six recommendations to the provincial government on how to begin to fill the gaps in the adult service system faced by youth in care with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) as they transition to adulthood. Between the Progress Board and the Morley Report, it appears the government is being criticized for its failures on both ends of the FASD tragedy. The Board said the Campbell government's early intervention is inadequate, and Morley said its transition to adulthood is inadequate.

In her November 9th news release, Morley said: "Most youth aren't expected to become completely independent of their families on their 19th birthday. Why should we expect youth in care, especially youth with significant functional disabilities, to manage on their own?" Possibly the most forceful report in her term as Child and Youth Officer, Morley came down strongly on the IQ levels that currently determine eligibility for services, the essence of a court decision that the provincial government cannot use IQ levels to deny access to Community Living services. Morley recommended that the Campbell government: "Acknowledge the ongoing obligation of government to support youth for whom the government has been guardian, and develop a 19-23 transition-to-adulthood case management program, to be administered by the Ministry of Children and Family Development. Begin by targeting youth in care who have or are suspected of having FASD and who are not eligible for Community Living BC." With the BC Progress Board adding its weight to the need to address FASD, the government must respond. It would help if media coverage of the reports demonstrated that they had been read. Perhaps the Official Opposition can help by drawing attention to what Campbell's hand picked advisors are recommending.