Social report tells good, bad and ugly

Stress shows up in quality of life number crunching

Quinte's poor, already in deep trouble, might find the going even worse, reveals an exhaustive examination of how the region is faring. A special report, recently released by the Community Development Council (CDC) of Quinte, reveals the quality of life here has degenerated on many social levels since the decade began. But it also points out some good things about Quinte, including a healthier environment and a drop in the suicide rate. Roni Summers-Wickens, executive director of CDC, said the findings stem from a computer-assisted number-crunching of figures culled from a cross-section of social agencies in Hastings and Prince Edward Counties. Included in the agencies were the Hastings Children's Aid Society (CAS), Hastings County Social Services and the Hastings-Prince Edward Counties Health Unit. The statistics were then compared to 1990 figures. All figures were compared against a population figure for both counties of 118,744. The study found:

• Fewer people are working than before despite business bouncing after a severe recession;
• As many as 206 per 10,000 people in the region are collecting welfare, 41.9 per cent higher than in 1990;
• The Children's Aid Society experienced an increase of 58.1 per cent in families and children needing assistance since 1990;
• And, perhaps the most startling of all, said Summers-Wickens, are the number of low birth-weight babies born in 1997 which represent a 36 per cent increase since seven years priors.

That latter statistic is worrisome, she said, because if babies are born with low birth-weights, chances are mothers and their children are living below the poverty line, unable to feed or care for themselves to ward off a variety of maladies. When combined with high welfare rates and mounting workloads for CAS officials, the formula spells an uncertain future for the region. "Welfare is up. CAS is up. What these numbers tell us is that people are under a lot more stress. Children become the victims and they're put at risk of hunger and violence. This is how our society of tomorrow is growing up," she said. While the numbers are troublesome, the results have at least given the community its first overall look at how people are faring in Quinte. "This is the first time we've seen the whole picture based on fact," she said. "We really had to struggle to get this information...getting the numbers was dreadful, it was a nightmare." The process, however, wasn't difficult due to agencies being uncooperative. Rather, the information couldn't readily be accessed, she said. When it was finally gleaned, not all of it was bad. It showed Quinte in a positive light on many fronts.

• The number of people on waiting lists for social housing has decreased since 1990 to a 22.5 people per 10,000 need housing, compared to 40.6 seven years ago;
• Suicides have dropped to 1.19 people per 10,000;
• The waiting list of long-term care facilities has also decreased;
• The environment has improved with less toxic spills reported and the amount of recyclables increasing to 20.85 per cent in 1997.

The key now, said Summers-Wickens, is to use the information to recover lost ground in social programs by making sure all agencies are aware of declines and work together to better the numbers. "What we need to do now is make sure that those people who are part of the solution know about these figures so they help the community grow," she said. The CDC will also file monthly and annual reports to build its own future data base to continue to track trends which affect lower-income people. The effort to compile statistics began in earnest in late 1996 after the Ontario Social Development Council, fresh from a world conference on social development, encouraged local community centres to embark on a panoramic picture-taking mission of communities across Ontario. Summers-Wickens then led the charge back home in Quinte.