The Act and Beyond: The Role of a Staff Assistant
by Family Councils Ontario
The Long-Term Care Homes Act was the first piece of legislation in Ontario to include Family Councils. The Act gave Family Councils certain powers, and outlined duties and responsibilities of the Home (‘Licensee’) to support the Council. One of these duties is to, upon request from the Family Council, “appoint a Family Council assistant who is acceptable to that Council to assist the Family Council (2007, c. 8, s. 61 (1)).” Further, “In carrying out his or her duties, a Family Council assistant shall take instructions from the Family Council, ensure confidentiality where requested and report to the Family Council (2007, c. 8, s. 61 (2)).” There is little in the legislation beyond this, so how can you determine the appropriate role of a Family Council Assistant?
The role and duties of a Family Council Assistant depend on the culture, needs, and capacities of the Family Council. Generally speaking, the role of a Family Council Assistant is to support and encourage the work of the Council, not lead the Council or dictate its structure or goals. Some Councils prefer their Staff Assistant to play a more active role in the Council, whereas others prefer that their Assistant be background support and only stepping up when actively called upon. Whatever role or duties the Staff Assistant performs must be requested and agreed upon by the Council.
Family Councils are by and for families with an emphasis on collaborating with the Home; the Council should therefore be led by families and families should take on the work of running the Council whenever possible. Have an open discussion among your members about what duties are required to run a successful Family Council. Then determine who among your group can carry out which roles or tasks. If you feel that no one can take on a specific piece of work, discuss if it’s something that you can access more information or training on in order to be able to do it. Or, is this something that would be appropriate for your Staff Assistant to do? If you ask your Staff Assistant to take on a piece of work, be very clear about why, how and when you want them to carry it out. Also consider a plan for transitioning this piece of work back to a family-managed task whenever possible. A family-led and run Council inspires a sense of responsibility for the Council and will promotes healthy, active engagement in the Council and Home.
The Act does not outline any specific roles or duties that a Staff Assistant many perform. Therefore, the specifics of the Staff Assistant role need to be negotiated and decided upon by the Council and Home. An open discussion about exactly what types of support your Council requires from the Home and what types of duties you want your Staff Assistant to perform will help to ensure that expectations are clear and understood by everyone. Council members must request staff help and should be clear about exactly what help is being requested. We strongly encourage that your Staff Assistant only take on duties that the Council members cannot do, and that the Council members take on as much of the Council work as possible. A family-led Council that takes on the work will be more successful and inspire participation from members.
It’s also important to determine how often you want your Staff Assistant to attend your Council meetings. Do you want them to attend all of each meeting? The first 15 minutes of each meeting? Only upon expressed invitation? As per the Act, Home staff can only attend Council meetings on invitation, so it’s important to determine when your Staff Assistant is invited to attend your meetings, and to make sure that this is included in your Terms of Reference and that his/her invitation and attendance are noted in your meeting minutes. Some Councils choose to meet without staff of the Home present or invite staff only to certain meetings. It’s essential to be clear about staff attendance at your meetings to ensure clarity and transparency of the Home’s involvement in your Council. For a Council to be truly self-determining, these options must be possible.
Assistance that a Staff Assistant may Provide:
- Helping to tell families of new residents about the Family Council and encouraging them to attend
- Advising families on changes within the Home (e.g., dietary changes, new policies, new staff)
- Explaining the Home’s policies and procedures
- Making other staff aware of the Council and its importance
- Helping the Council communicate its questions and ideas to, and receive responses from, appropriate staff and administration
- Bolstering Council members’ self-confidence and enthusiasm
- Seeing that members receive recognition for their efforts
- Helping members learn the skills needed to achieve their goals
- Training Council members to run effective meetings
- Facilitating the development of an action plan for processing concerns including:
- Encouraging individual members to take specific concerns to the appropriate staff
- Encouraging the Council as a whole address collective concerns to the administration or appropriate staff person in a Home
- Helping to book guest speakers
- Facilitating communication with outside stakeholders (without speaking for the Council)
Activities that a Staff Assistant Should Leave to Council Members:
- Performing any task that members are able to do
- Taking meeting minutes
- Planning and running meetings
- Speaking on behalf of the Council
- Selecting meeting times and dates, topics of interest, projects and activities
The Long-Term Care Homes Act provides us with a starting point for considering the role and duties of a Family Council Staff Assistant. In order to fully determine the role Home staff, particularly the Family Council Assistant, play in a Family Council we need to consider and discuss how the relationship between the Home and Council should work: what specific duties or pieces of work you want your Staff Assistant to carry out; what pieces of work the Council members care capable of doing; and, how often you want your Staff Assistant to attend Council meetings. All of these decisions are ones that should be made by the Council, in open communication and negotiation with the Home. The relationship between the Council and Home staff and administrator is important to a successful Family Council. A strong, positive relationship helps to ensure good communication and successful initiatives and activities of the Council.