Letter to Wing Commander: Virtual Visit with 8 Wing Trenton

13 January 2021

Colonel Ryan Deming
Wing Commander
8 Wing Trenton
PO Box 1000 Station Forces
Astra ON K0K 3W0

Dear Colonel Deming:

I am writing to follow up on our virtual visit with 8 Wing Trenton from 17 November to 19 November 2020. I want to thank you, Wing Chief Warrant Officer Baulne and your team for extending such warm hospitality throughout our visit. We were pleased to virtually meet with, and listen to concerns and positive feedback from military personnel, civilian employees, caregivers, and family members. Your sincerity and encouragement of all Wing personnel to engage openly with my team resulted in a very successful visit.

The purpose of this letter is to expand upon the briefing I provided you on 20 November 2020, and to highlight some of the concerns and positive feedback that we heard during our visit. I recognize that you and your staff are aware of some of these issues, but I thought it would be helpful to detail them nonetheless and to offer you our assistance should you wish to follow up on any of these matters. I am a firm believer that collaboration can lead to long-lasting, positive change for the Defence community.

Cost of Living/Housing:

As we discussed, one of the biggest challenges we heard about was the cost of living and affordability of accommodations. We heard from members that they are having a difficult time finding affordable housing. Since 2017, the cost of housing in the Trenton area has increased substantially and many members reported that they cannot afford to purchase a home and, under the current Integrated Relocation Policy, they are not eligible to receive Post-Living Differential. 

There is also an increased waitlist for Residential Housing Units (RHU) for families and a lack of RHUs for single members. Since 2017, the Canadian Forces Housing Agency has not been able to bring their waitlist down to zero after each Annual Posting Season. There are currently 250 members on the wait list for RHU’s in Trenton and it is unlikely that most will be offered an RHU. The impacts of the affordability crisis in Trenton have resulted in more members choosing to go on Imposed Restriction (IR) and be separated from their families. However, a positive point was that unlike some other bases, we did not hear of any negative comments on the condition of base RHU’s.

Relocation - BGRS (formerly known as Brookfield Global Relocation Services):

Members raised concerns about obtaining information on the relocation policy and the services provided by BGRS. More specifically, members were not aware that there are three dedicated on-base relocation coordinators to assist and answer questions. They also raised concerns about a lack of responsiveness from BGRS representatives, lack of information sessions and, incorrect or conflicting information provided by BGRS representatives. Members frequently visited their Orderly Room (OR) to share concerns regarding BGRS because they are not receiving assistance or a response in a timely manner. Members in the OR were unable to provide a response as they are not trained in relocation policy and are perceived as not helpful. Members were not aware that complaints about BGRS performance issues could be sent to the positional mailbox for the Director Relocation Business Management (DRBM). This was the most frequently raised issue during our virtual visit

There was also some misunderstanding of who had access to the Administrative Response Center (ARC) who provide clarification on policy issues. Prior to COVID-19, only personnel whose responsibility was to support CAF members and their families within the chain of command could submit a request to ARC. However, since COVID-19 this has changed and now all members can contact the ARC directly, but it is recommended that they continue to approach their chain of command first for assistance.

Primary Health Care

The medical staff advised that they have a very capable team but are lacking the capacity to provide exceptional care and treat more complex cases. They are able to provide normal care and there has been good collaboration and engagement with the Kingston medical community. The pandemic, however, has highlighted the need to adopt more proactive measures in dealing with the shortage in manning levels. While some of the manning levels are due to the difficulties in recruiting medical staff, it was stated that there are regional variations; Shilo and Petawawa are under-manned while Kingston and Ottawa are better manned. There was a perception that those more desirable postings have more staff. The medical officers and medical technicians were most impacted.

We also heard concerns regarding the lack of policies and procedures surrounding medical care for Cadets during the cadet camps. It was shared that the summer period is a critical manning time for the medical staff as this is when they take planned leave and re-energize. This was an issue that our office identified during our investigative report on Cadets. Our office continues to raise this issue with the Surgeon General and the Commander National Cadet and Junior Canadian Rangers.

Mental Health Care

We were informed that 8 Wing Trenton is a high tempo base and there are not enough mental health staff and resources. There is a need for improved access to mental health care and to reduce the lengthy wait times to see a practitioner. 

It was noted that due to COVID-19, there is limited support through the Medical Inspection Room (MIR) for mental health services. While the Sentinel program is available at 8 Wing where designated individuals have been trained in suicide awareness and prevention, members expressed concerns about how it is being implemented. Instead of using this program, we were advised that members are going to the clinic to get assistance which is putting additional strain on existing health care resources.

During our townhalls it was mentioned that there are approximately six mental health Chaplains in Canada and none currently in Trenton. We heard that it has been difficult at times trying to provide mental health services as the tempo is so high and resources are stretched to the limit. It was also mentioned that there is little support for the Chaplain group and this, combined with the tempo, has had an impact on their mental health as well.

Internet Stability and Reliability

We heard various concerns related to technology from the medical staff and the Military Family Resource Centre (MFRC). Specifically, the internet connectivity within the MedicaI Inspection Room (MIR) has prevented them from accessing files in real time. This poses challenges when trying to provide timely, effective and safe health care.

In addition, updates to the Canadian Forces Health Information System (CFHIS) have caused the system to crash and has slowed down the ability of caregivers to perform their duties. Caregivers highlighted that CFHIS is unable to keep up with the technological changes available in regular systems. Therefore, their ability to respond quickly has been negatively impacted. There was a sense that online access is now much slower than two months ago. The problems have been exacerbated by a restriction of hours of support provided by Shared Services Canada.

They are also unable to utilize newer methods for delivering patient care such as telemedicine. During the pandemic when effective social interaction is important, the mental health staff advised that since they do not have the video capability to meet with patients, the only means of contact has been by phone.

Further, they shared the challenges they have with the definition of peripheral devices and the ability to get funds to secure the items needed to provide services. The required software is available, but cannot be obtained due to red tape, i.e. they are a Lodger unit from Kingston and not part of 8 Wing.

Lastly, we heard from the MFRC who are having difficulty delivering virtual programs due to unreliable WIFI in their buildings.

Families

Families shared their concerns regarding the lack of access to primary health care when members are posted to Trenton. Although this is not unique to Trenton, the inability to access a family doctor continues to be problematic as they are then forced to use other services like an emergency room or walk-in clinics. This was noted to be more challenging and stressful for families who have children with special needs.

The MFRC stressed the importance of child care in support of operations. It has a large child care capacity, but is now only working at two thirds due to insufficient staff as a result of COVID-19. The pandemic has also impacted the ability of families to secure emergency child care as there were differences in the definitions of “essential” work between the CAF and the province of Ontario. Due to a lack of funding, the MFRC is currently only able to offer full-time care. As a result, families are unable to access part-time care for their children. There are also long wait times for private child care so families have to rely more on services provided by the MFRC.

It is worth noting that this week, I announced the launch of a systemic investigation into military families, focusing on compassionate postings^[1].

Manning and Operational Tempo:

As was the case when my predecessor visited in 2011, this concern was raised during our meetings. We heard numerous concerns from CAF members and civilian employees relating to vacancies, high operational tempo and the requirement to do more with less. As noted above, the mental health staff advised that the pandemic has increased the time and need for critical/complex health care cases; however, there has been no corresponding increase in staffing levels. The result has been a lack of continuity of care and a need to find ways or solutions to meet new levels of operational tempo with existing resources. Trenton was compared to Petawawa which has more resources to address a similar tempo.

The MFRC noted that they are extremely busy centres and staff are getting worn out; it is becoming difficult to take rest periods.

Official Languages

Members shared their dissatisfaction with a lack of access to mental health care in French. We heard from Francophone members who described challenges in accessing mental health care from doctors who cannot speak French. There are long wait times to see a French speaking doctor and some have to drive long distances to see one.

Members shared that access to second language training for all trades and rank would enhance care in accordance with the Official Languages Act. We learned that clinical demands often preclude attendance or second language training is offered later in a member’s career.

The MFRC also shared concerns regarding their inability to provide more programming in French and the difficulties in recruiting bilingual staff.

Infrastructure and Equipment

During our visit, concerns were reported about the current state of the facilities in Trenton. We heard that there are differences between the recreation centers across Bases and Wings. We were told that these differences affect the ability of Personnel Support Program (PSP) staff to effectively run programs.

We also heard that there are discrepancies in the amount of funds that are attached to uniforms for base team sports and the Staff of the Non-Public Funds (NPF) do not have the appropriate financial authority to procure the equipment they need to deliver programs and services to members. Staff shared that there is a need to standardize basic services across the Bases and Wings.

Support staff expressed concerns with relying on Wing operations (Real Property Operations) for maintenance and that it often poses a barrier for successful delivery of programs and services. For example, we heard about maintenance issues for the aquatic facilities and that these facilities ended up being closed for a year when the timeline for completion was supposed to be a month. These delays have negatively impacted the ability to provide consistent programming and clients end up going elsewhere for it.

I would like to say that many of these concerns echo complaints we have heard across the Defence Community. Some of these issues will feed into our systemic reviews and are part of my engagement with the senior cadre within the DND/CAF. I should also note that my team received individual complaints or requests for additional information during our visit. While I have not outlined these above, in order to ensure absolute confidentiality, we have reached out to those individuals in order to assist where and as required.

I also recognize that some of the issues and challenges you are confronted with are outside of your control. Overall, the sum of all the issues that are experienced in the unique locale of Trenton is greater than the parts individually. That being said, I encourage you to continue pushing as hard as you have been to address the local concerns at your Wing. Please do not hesitate to contact me or our office should you require assistance.

I would also like to thank you and your staff for your help in the organization and implementation of a very successful outreach visit.

Sincerely,

Gregory A. Lick

Ombudsman

c.c.: CEO CFMWS

CMP
CFHA

ADM IM

[1] https://www.canada.ca/en/ombudsman-national-defence-forces/reports-news-statistics/news-statements-messages/2021/ombudsman-systemic-investigation-military-families.html