You're totally right. The residential hospices in this country are predominantly in Ontario and Quebec, with some in B.C. They aren't universal in the country. We know that they're a good program to offer. They are well supported in some areas, but they are struggling with the model of being a charity. I know that in Ontario the provincial government put up some money for increasing the number of residential hospices in Ontario.
The problem is that they gave them money to create the building and the space but not the operating funds. In Quebec, there are different models, but they are asking the Quebec government for more operational funds so that they can strike a balance between what they need to raise as a charity and what they get from the government. They are contributing to the health care system. It's an ongoing issue. I think we need to look at all the services we need at the end of life—acute care hospitals, residential hospices, home care programs, and others. They are all funded in a different way.
The integration between long-term care and acute care is not there in many places. People sit in hospitals when they could be in a residential hospice or at home with supports. It costs our system a huge amount of money to keep people in acute care, because we haven't thought downstream. With respect to residential hospices and long-term care facilities, we have to start thinking in more than a two- or three-year gap. We have to look at what the needs of our population are going to be over the next ten years.
Residential hospices are great. There are less than 200 hospice programs in the country. There are less than 50 residential hospices in this country. Quebec and Ontario have the bulk of them. If the population can support a residential hospice, it is a great way to go. But we're not there yet.