Setting the Balance of Care in Northwestern Ontario: Opportunities and Challenges for Aging in Place

Produced by the Health System Performance Research Network.A growing number of people in northwestern Ontario (much like other parts of the world) require access to home and community care services as they age. Homecare plays an important role in meeting the daily living needs of people in their natural environments. Ideally, homecare can also substitute for more expensive care in hospitals and long-term care facilities. Finding the appropriate balance between care in the home and care in institutional settings for older adults with care needs is not always easy to achieve. To that end, our team has been working closely with care providers and managers across Ontario for over ten years to better understand the characteristics of vulnerable older adult populations who are at risk of long-term care placement and explore opportunities for them to age in place. This report highlights our most recent study of this nature in northwestern Ontario (NWO). The study had 3 core objectives: 1) to examine the characteristics of adults waiting for long-term care in Northwestern Ontario; 2) to work with local care managers and providers to design and estimate the costs of packages of community care for clients waiting for long-term care and 3) to outline the factors that need to be addressed to make it easier for care providers and managers to mobilize and deliver home and community care for older adults in their communities.Supported by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care