Our 20th year.

Community Action enters its 20th year of publishing news and information on health and social services in Canada, as well as in other parts of the world. We undertook this publication in August 1985 because we believed that an independent, self-supporting journal focussing on social policies and programs would be useful to people who are involved in the community services.

We envisioned it as a publication that would focus on social policies and programs in much the same way as the business sections of newspapers and other publications stress the interests of business and financial institutions.

Our reports are brief, rarely more than 400 words because Community Action introduces but does not exhaust its subject matter. We assume that readers will use these articles as summaries and starting points to pursue areas of interest as they choose.

Would we always have enough news to fill an issue? This was a question asked in the early years. We quickly discovered that the world of health and social services was very much alive and could provide enough news and items of interest to fill many columns of print. Now, we are developing a web-site that will give Community Action an integrated in-print and online operation.

Over the years, we have reported and commented on many issues. Back in 1985, "deinstitutionalization" was in process. Large congregate facilities for people with psychiatric and physical problems were closing and the residents were being relocated in group homes, rooming houses, or with relatives. Closing these institutions would save money. As many of these institutions had sad histories as "warehouses," the prevailing idea was that the residents would be "better off in the community'. By some inexplicable magic, community services were expected to provide aid. In reality, funds were slow in coming and we are still waiting for many of these services to materialize.

Our homelessness problem also began with deinstitutionalization. The problem was further aggravated by the elimination of social housing, welfare "reform," and cuts to employment programs. All contributed to the increasing numbers of people in hostels and emergency shelters, and to conditions of housing insecurity.

As we look back, our considered diagnosis is that we are suffering from a pathology called "bottom-line thinking". This term is a euphemism for short-term gains and opportunism with little thought of the consequences and impact on individuals, families and communities. Cutting public expenditures and taxes to eliminate social programs may be excellent bottomline thinking but in practice, it wreaks havoc on the lives of the unfortunate.

The consequences show up in a number of ways. For instance, food banks attempt to fill in the gaps in current social assistance programs. We cut youth programs and focussed instead on crime and punishment of our young people. Reduced funding had tragic consequences when child welfare agencies were unable to act quickly and with thoroughness.

We closed hospitals and long-term care health facilities in favor of home-care that was inadequately funded to begin with. Like deinstitutionalization, this would save money. Again, the necessary allocations were slow in coming and politicians are now scrambling to make up for the deficiencies in home-care. Meanwhile, patients and their families are forced to struggle.

In the future, we will be reporting and commenting on new and developing issues--income security, welfare, employment services, and social insurance, among others. These will return to centre stage as we recognize that market forces and the bottom-line thinking of past decades have skewed income distribution. We will have to ponder what role government, non-profit organizations, and for-profit groups, should play in the future delivery of health and social services. A question that looms over us is the impact of international trade agreements on our domestic social policies and programs. And despite the difficulties at home, Canada's community services will be called upon to play a role in international social development.

We hope for this column to continue contributing information and comments on these and other issues, as well as on unanticipated ones that are yet to emerge. We thank you, our readers, for your continuing encouragement and support.

--L.K.