Robin Simmons

Robin Simmons, a Humber college student who suffers from cerebral palsy, yesterday pleaded for more direct funding from the Ontario government for community-based home care.

"Give us the control ... so nobody, regardless of their age or disability, will ever have to live in an institution," the 24-year-old student, who spent 10 years in health-care facilities while undergoing treatment, told a news conference at Queen's Park yesterday.

In 2002, she spent one year in a transitional living project directing her own personal care from home, something she said made her convinced of the need to shift the support from institutions to home-based projects.

"I, along with numerous others, would like the choice of purchasing our own attendants and choosing who we feel more comfortable with providing our personal care," Simmons said.

She was speaking in support of the Ontario Coalition for Long-term Care Reform which believes better care for seniors and the disabled is achieved by allocating more money for community-based home care, like community access centres, rather than institutional care such as nursing homes.