In the province of British Columbia there is legislation to protect adults and children receiving care in licensed residential community care facilities. This legislation is the Community Care and Assisted Living Act and the Residential Care Regulation. Individuals providing care to more than two individuals, not related to them, are required to be licensed, and to provide care in a licensed setting.

Care means supervision that is provided to:

•  a child or youth through a residential care facility;
•  an adult who is vulnerable because of family circumstances, age, disability, illness or frailty; and dependent on caregivers for continuing assistance or direction in the form of 3 or more prescribed services.

Prescribed services are defined in the Community Care and Assisted Living Regulation as:

• regular assistance with activities of daily living, including eating, mobility, dressing, grooming, bathing or personal hygiene;
• central storage of medication, distribution of medication, administering medication or monitoring the taking of medication;
• maintenance or management of the cash resources or other property of a resident or person in care;
• monitoring of food intake or of adherence to therapeutic diets;
• structured behaviour management and intervention;
• psychosocial rehabilitative therapy or intensive physical rehabilitative therapy.

Licensing Officers inspect, license and monitor over 200 licensed residential care facilities in the Vancouver Island Health Authority.