"Dr. Peter" lives on through AIDS daycare centre
CMAJ 1997;157:631
During his lengthy battle with AIDS, Dr. Peter Jepson-Young tried to live life to the full. "Dr. Peter" was well known in Vancouver for his AIDS Diaries, which described how he lived with AIDS. They first appeared on local television, and then he received a national profile on the CBC during his last 2 years of life. Shortly before he died in 1992, he told his family and friends to do something to provide "comfort care" to help patients living with AIDS maintain their independence.
His request came to fruition this year. The Dr. Peter Centre, which links with other AIDS organizations that share his vision, began offering a variety of support programs in April 1997, when it became Canada's first AIDS daycare centre. All patients are formally admitted to the centre, which is operated by the Dr. Peter AIDS Foundation; they may refer themselves. The facility is currently open 5 hours daily on weekdays but eventually hopes to open 7 days a week. It reached its capacity of 55 people within the first month of operation, with about 25 people attending each day. Another 25 are already on a waiting list.
Nutrition is a key element at the centre, which serves breakfast and lunch. Judi Angel, the foundation's executive director, says some participants have gained 9 kg in their first month. The facility also features rooms for reading, group therapy, daytime naps, complementary therapy and children's play. Self-responsibility is emphasized: participants can dispense their medication and do their laundry.
At a daily cost of $70 per person, compared with an estimated $1000 per day for hospitalization, the program's cost-effectiveness is indisputable. Operating funding comes from a $1 million Ministry of Health grant; the centre is already being evaluated by the British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS.
Housed temporarily at St. Paul's Hospital, the centre is planning to build a combined daycare centre and residential facility, which will have 20 beds for both respite and hospice-style care, on an adjacent site that will be leased from the city. Fund-raising is under way for the $7-million project. Staff hope to move to the new facility by Jepson-Young's birthday on June 7, 1999. -- © Heather Kent
 |
Send a letter to the editor responding to this article
Envoyez une lettre à la rédaction au sujet de cet article |
News and analysis