all the lonely people, where do they all belong? there is an answer for the eleanor rigbys of the world in a growing number of canadian communities: the oasis senior supportive living program.
oasis is a neighbourhood-focused program for older adults who live in naturally occurring retirement communities — buildings or neighbourhoods that are already home to a higher proportion of older adults. it launched in two vancouver buildings in the renfrew-collingwood neighbourhood last year , with more locations in b.c. on the horizon thanks to funding by the government of canada’s age well at home initiative.
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in renfrew collingwood , almost 50 members have been participating in oasis activities at two brightside buildings since december 2022 — with over 1,000 visits to program activities, including chair yoga, painting, group baking, and bingo. an on-site coordinator works with oasis members to develop and implement the programs. we have been able to greatly benefit from collingwood neighbourhood house’s programs and resources, including weekly lunches and having access to their bus for community outings to locations like granville island, deep cove and english bay.
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dr. catherine donnelly is an associate professor at queen’s university and director of the health services and policy research institute at queen’s university. see her research talk on the oasis program.
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