I feel that it has to be a collaborative approach. You need to have many people at the table, and definitely frontline workers.
Here in Ontario, we have a very strong registered nurses association that's been a very strong advocate and proponent for the quality of care that residents should be having. Individuals like that and advocacy groups should also be at the table, and also there should definitely be representation from the residents and from the families of those who cannot speak for themselves.
I agree that what I'm proposing in terms of national standards does touch upon what Kathy was referring to. My idea is that regardless of the type of home a senior chooses to live in, long-term care is just one option of many. There should be consistency across the country. It's been very frustrating for me and for many families—I have friends in other parts of Canada, and we compare notes—how disparate the quality of care is for our seniors. It was almost as though we were in 13 different countries instead of one country.