Introduction
Long-term care homes are places where you live and get support with personal care and nursing services. They are sometimes called nursing homes.
Long-term care homes are funded and licensed by the Ministry of Long-Term Care.
This resource can help you understand your rights as a resident of an Ontario long-term care home.
Residents have legal rights
In Ontario, long-term care homes must follow a law called the Fixing Long‑Term Care Act, 2021, which includes a Residents’ Bill of Rights.
These rights are listed and explained starting on page Residents’ Bill of Rights.
Posting the Bill of Rights
Every long-term care home must post the Bill of Rights where people can easily see it.
They must also include it in the information package people get when they move into the home.
The Bill of Rights tells staff at the home that they must respect your rights while you live there. It tells them to remember that you are in your home. And it reminds everyone that residents of long-term care homes are valued members of the community.
Making sure the Bill of Rights is followed
Every long-term care home must have a way for residents and others to complain if the Bill of Rights is not being followed.
Inspectors from the Ministry of Long-Term Care enforce the Bill of Rights by inspecting the homes for various reasons. This includes when someone makes a complaint.
Residents can also enforce their rights in other ways, for example, by taking the home to court. Read about what to do if your rights are not being followed starting on page How to make a complaint.
During health emergencies
When there is a serious health emergency, Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health and local health officers can make temporary orders to protect peoples’ health.
These temporary orders may take away or limit some of your rights. For example, the orders might say:
- you cannot have people visit you, except for essential caregivers,
- group activities and eating in the dining room must stop, or
- you cannot come and go from the home when you want.
Your long-term care home must follow these orders until the health emergency ends.
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