The Ontario Caring Advisory Circle (OCAC) guided the identification and development of culturally appropriate resources to support Indigenous residents in long-term care homes between April 2018 and March 2020. Membership of the OCAC was comprised of up to 11 members with wisdom and expertise in long-term care and Indigenous culture. Members were a mix from northern and southern regions of Ontario.
The OCAC created a five-pillar approach to their terms of reference. These five pillars formed the foundation of the work and represented the commitment, interest, and duties of the advisors.
Pillar One – Ensuring a cultural lens in all Ontario CLRI activities
Pillar Two – Identifying resources to fill gaps
Pillar Three – Ideas for education and training
Pillar Four – Identifying research projects
Pillar Five – Guidance for stakeholder outreach
History
The initial gathering of the OCAC took place on April 24, 2018 at the Toronto Birth Centre. At this gathering, the OCAC came together to plan their shared vision for the work ahead. Through process and spirit, the group’s terms of reference were birthed. The OCAC meets several times a year via video/teleconference or face-to-face.
Since culturally appropriate imagery is important to the OCAC, the names of Indigenous artists living in Ontario were put into a hat during the October 24, 2018 face-to-face gathering at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery. Robert Kakegamic’s name was drawn and he was contacted to design and paint the OCAC’s logo to represent their spirit. Robert continues the Woodland School of Art tradition while including cultural values and old legends in vivid colours as part of the new way of presenting and expressing Indigenous identity. Robert lives in Sandy Lake, Ontario, a Swampy Cree-Ojibwa First Nations community.
The Saint Elizabeth First Nations, Inuit and Métis Program provides virtual education at no cost to health care providers working in First Nation communities. Their national knowledge exchange network includes online courses, webinars, community forums and 24/7 access to peers and experts. They also partner with communities and organizations to better understand gaps and barriers to care and support improvements through action-based research.
This program has been identified as a resource that supports Indigenous culture in long-term care by the Ontario Caring Advisory Circle.
Indigenous Cultural Safety (ICS) Training is an interactive and facilitated online training program for all professionals working in the Ontario health and social service systems administered by the Indigenous Primary Health Care Council, who is working in partnership with Indigenous partners in Ontario to develop ICS training that is specific to Ontario.
The training addresses the need for increased Indigenous cultural safety within the system by bringing to light the service provider bias and the legacies of colonization that continue to negatively affect service accessibility and health outcomes for Indigenous people.
Anti-Indigenous racial discrimination and bias have profound negative impacts on the health and wellness of Indigenous communities in Ontario. The Ontario ICS Program is focused on supporting Indigenous Health transformation as part of the overall health and social service systems transformation underway in Ontario. The goal is to improve Indigenous healthcare experiences and outcomes by increasing respect and understanding of the unique history and current realities of Indigenous populations.
This program has been identified as a resource that supports Indigenous culture in long-term care by the Ontario Caring Advisory Circle.
This guide provides practical advice and tools for how to plan, develop and deliver LTC services for Francophones in the GTA and across Ontario and Canada. The guide is intended for all those involved in planning, advocating for, and providing Francophone health services in Ontario, particularly the LHINs, FLHPEs, FLHNs, health service providers, particularly LTC home administrators and boards, all staff of LTC homes, and Francophone community leaders.
Although the guide is geared toward designing and delivering LTC services in French, the information and tools would be beneficial for other community and residential care models for Francophones as well as services for seniors from other language minority groups.
The development of this guides was a collaborative effort between the French Health Network of Central Southwestern Ontario, Entité 4, Reflet Salvéo, Bendale Acres, the City of Toronto and other regional partners.
The needs of residents in long-term care can be affected by their gender, language, Indigenous identity, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, etc. In response to this diversity, the Ontario Centres for Learning Research and Innovation in Long-Term Care (CLRI) are engaging provincial stakeholders to identify and develop education and other resources that support the diversity of residents in long-term care. This presentation shares inspirational stories and resources that can support long-term care homes in their delivery of resident-centered care in a way that acknowledges individual diversity and aligns with Ontario’s Action Plan for Seniors.
This presentation was delivered at the Together We Care Conference on April 20, 2018.
This initiative supports workforce capacity building and fosters person-centred care through the identification, development and spread of information and resources that support diversity and inclusion in long-term care (LTC) homes. This initiative recognizes that care experiences can be influenced by individual circumstances, including language, ability, race, ethnicity, religion, spirituality, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation and socio-economic status. This initiative aims to educate and share resources that support LTC homes in delivering care that acknowledges resident and team member diversity.
A Supporting Diversity and Inclusion in Long-Term Care Advisory Committee and other experts, including persons with lived experience, contribute to the work of this initiative and the identification and spread of resources that support diversity and inclusion of all residents, care partners (family and friends of residents) and team members in LTC, and inform diversity and inclusion across all CLRI activities.
During this webinar, you will learn about the Making the Most of Mealtimes (M3) research study that was conducted in long-term care homes across Canada, including useful information about food and fluid intake, better practices that were observed, where we need to focus, and new initiatives from the M3 team.
The objectives of this webinar are to:
Learn about research results from the Making the Most of Mealtimes national study
Understand the important role of food for nutritional health and quality of life
Learn best practices for planning nutrient dense menus in long-term care
This webinar was offered by the Ontario CLRI hosted at the Schlegel-UW Research Institute for Aging and was presented on March 28, 2018.
About the Presenter
Heather Keller, RD, PhD, FDC is the Schlegel Research Chair in Nutrition & Aging at the University of Waterloo. She conducts research focused on improving the food intake and nutritional health of older adults in hospital, community and long term care residences. A special focus is persons living with dementia and their care partners and how food and mealtimes can be central to their quality of life.
Cycling Without Age (CWA) is an innovative program that makes it possible for seniors or those with mobility challenges to stay active and get back on bicycles, allowing them to enjoy their scenic communities.
This resource page features several informative tools to support long-term care (LTC) leaders and management in implementing CWA, and informing families and care partners that it exists. Included is a descriptive article, a recording of a webinar hosted by the Ontario Centres for Learning, Research and Innovation in Long-Term Care (CLRI), and a program brochure to help LTC homes with implementation.
Background
Bruyère Continuing Care opened Ontario’s first CWA chapter in 2016, in collaboration with community partner Gary Bradshaw. The program has been running in Bruyère’s Saint-Louis Residence, Élisabeth Bruyère Residence, and Bruyère Village, and the success has been tremendous. The Ontario CLRI supported the program evaluation. Learn more about the Cycling Without Age program at Bruyère.
Cycling Without Age: Enhancing the Lives of Seniors – The Right to Wind in Your Hair
On March 12, 2018, the Ontario CLRI hosted a webinar focused on the concept of Cycling Without Age (CWA), as well as the pilot project conducted in Bruyère Continuing Care’s long-term care homes. It also discusses the purposes and goals of the program, as well as the benefits and challenges the Bruyère teams came across during implementation.
Background
CWA is an innovative program that has helped seniors stay active and stay connected with their communities. CWA is making it possible for seniors or those with mobility challenges to get back on their bicycles and enjoy their communities and nature. Learn more about the CWA program.
Presenters
Kim Durst-Mackenzie – Therapeutic Recreation and Volunteer Coordinator, Bruyère Continuing Care
The initial gathering of the OCAC took place on April 24, 2018 at the Toronto Birth Centre. At this gathering, the OCAC came together to plan their shared vision for the work ahead. Through process and spirit, the group’s terms of reference were birthed. The OCAC meets several times a year via video/teleconference or face-to-face.
