Last year, as a high school student, I went to Hilltop House every afternoon to volunteer. It was a great privilege be able to put a smile on the faces of the elderly residents as well as learn from their lives and experiences. This incredible experience is what has driven me to pursue becoming a Health Care Assistant (HCA) through Capilano University.
In The Squamish Chief article, Troubles Reported at Hilltop published on Jan. 4, the language used was extremely degrading to the residents of Hilltop House. In the HCA program at Capilano University, the instructors put so much emphasis on using correct terminology. I was taken aback by the terminology that was used in this article, especially considering that The Squamish Chief is a main news source in Squamish that undoubtedly gets delivered to Hilltop House for staff and residents to read. The incorrect term that stood out to me was “diaper”. In the HCA program these are banned words as they are degrading and disrespectful towards such an amazing group of people, including many people that have contributed to making Squamish what it is today. The correct terms for the word “diaper” are incontinent pad or incontinent brief.
I hope this has been informative to you and your staff. This term may seem trivial for you but it is Hilltop residents’ dignity and self-respect that was jeopardized, I feel that it is my responsibility to advocate for them.
