Healthcare Excellence Canada is now accepting applications for a new collaborative focused on advancing promising practices that enable older adults with health and social needs to age where they call home, in the community, with formal support. Enabling Aging in Place will help improve safety, health and quality of life for older adults and delay entry to long-term care. The collaborative will also aim to reduce unnecessary emergency department visits and demands on care partners while optimizing health and social care resources.
Most people in Canada – 85 percent of adults surveyed and 96 percent of those aged 65 years and older – want to avoid moving into a long-term care home and age at home for as long as they can. Despite this desire, one in 10 people who enter long-term care could have potentially been cared for at home with formal support. Many older adults encounter obstacles such as lack of information, inadequate or inequitable support navigating services, limited mobility and transportation, and more when accessing services to support them to age in place. Additionally, many northern, rural and remote communities have fewer formal supports available compared to their urban counterparts.
There are promising practices across Canada that have successfully helped older adults stay at home safely, with better health and quality of life. Enabling Aging in Place is designed to help organizations implement their own programs that align with the key principles that led to the success of these practices. The collaborative will prioritize older adults living in the community who have complex medical needs and are more heavily impacted by structural and social determinants of health, such as what they look like, where they live or how much money they have.
Participating teams will receive support to develop an implementation and evaluation plan specific to their program that will help them adapt, adopt or expand an aging in place program that builds on the strengths of individual communities and responds to the local needs of older adults and their care partners living in their community. HEC will provide support to participating teams, including:
- Seed funding of up to $15,000 per team
- Virtual and in-person networking, coaching and learning events to promote sharing and collaborations across Canada including peer-to-peer learning
- Access to evidence, resources and other capability building supports
- Measurement and evaluation support
- Opportunities to guide the development of new resources to support aging in place programs as well as community-specific needs
“Everyone in Canada deserves safe, equitable and high-quality healthcare, no matter their age or needs,” said Jennifer Zelmer, President and CEO of Healthcare Excellence Canada. “By expanding access to innovative approaches that enable people to age in the right place for them, together we can improve health outcomes and quality of life for older adults in our communities.”
Enabling Aging in Place is part of HEC’s work to reimagine care of older adults with health and social needs. This initiative is also aligned with shared federal, provincial/territorial and municipal efforts to help people living in Canada age with dignity, closer to home.
Apply to join the Enabling Aging in Place collaborative
Join organizations across Canada committed to enhancing the ability of older adults with health and social needs to age where they call home, in the community, with formal support. Apply to join the Enabling Aging in Place program:
- Attend an informational webinar on October 25, 2023 (12:00 - 1:00 PM ET) to learn more about the application process.
- Learn more about the application process and submit your application by November 15, 2023.
