Families and friends of residents at Copper Ridge Place plan to start an advocacy group to better understand the services available to their loved ones at the extended care facility.

About 15 people attended a community meeting early Friday afternoon, including representatives from a number of social service organizations. They met to discuss ways to improve care in light of recent concerns over residents' safety.

The common opinion at the meeting was clear from the beginning: the facility needs more staff.

Family members and volunteers spoke of their admiration for the staff at the facility, but said they believed the current staff needs more help.

Questions about security and staffing at Copper Ridge Place began after a woman with Down Syndrome was allegedly sexually assaulted during the past summer by another resident living in the building.

The case is currently with the Crown Prosecutor's office to determine if any charges will be laid.

The woman's sister, who the Star is not identifying because of the nature of the crime, moderated most of the discussion.

"The nurses and staff are not the issue,” she said. "They work hard and are very dedicated, there's just not enough to keep an eye on everything.”

Other family members reported dropping family members off at the facility and not being able to find any staff to leave their loved ones with.

According to the Department of Health and Social Services, the Yukon has the highest number of nursing hours per patient in the county in its extended care facilities — 4.8 hours a day.

"We have staff that are worth their weight in gold,” said Cathy Morton-Bielz, assistant deputy minister of continuing care, who attended the meeting. "We have the best ratios in the country.”

Vicki Wilson, the executive director of the Yukon Association for Community Living, said she's concerned about what will happen in the future, when more of the population will be looking for long-term care.

"I'm not that far away from being part of a group that will be inundating the system with the need for extra care,” she said. "What happens then?”

According to a 2011 report by the auditor general of Canada, Health and Social Services is the Yukon government's largest department, accounting for 29 per cent of the government's total expenses.

In the 2009-10 fiscal year, the department spent $148 million on health services and $28 million on continuing care.

Total health services expenses have grown by 47 per cent over the past five years, the report said.

When asked about some staff getting extensive overtime to fill in for colleagues, Morton-Bielz said extended care facilities have stricter-than-average policies for sending sick staff home.

"If we have someone with the sniffles, we send them home to protect residents,” she said.

As far as whether she believes the facilities needed more staff, Morton-Bielz again pointed to the high resident-to-nurse ratio.

She said the department is considering bring in an outside source to do an audit of the facility's security system.

Some of the ideas brought up at the meeting include an independent body to investigate complaints, a new "floater” position to fill in on the units when needed and security cameras.

There appeared to be some confusion about what services are currently available to residents and their families.

After one attendee suggested a committee be formed to connect residents with administration, Morton-Bielz told the group one already exists.

The residents' council meets once a month, she said, adding that Copper Ridge Place also has a residents' bill of rights and one of the leading fall prevention programs in the country.

"We are very much in touch with what the best practices are,” she said.

The group seemed genuinely surprised that the council exists.

"Did anyone know about that?” the moderator asked.

No one raised their hand.

The new advocacy group will focus on gaining a better understanding of how the extended care facilities function and how families can get more involved, organizers said.

It is scheduled to meet for the first time in two weeks.

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