one of the goals outlined in the national institute on ageing’s national seniors strategy is to help seniors stay active, engaged and maintain their independence. but many seniors struggle finding suitable housing — especially affordable housing.while retirement homes exist, for many the costs are out of reach — so some are choosing co-housing.louise bardswich is a retired college dean and co-owns a home in port perry, ont. she and three other women pulled their resources together to build a shared home.their home features design elements that will allow them to age in place — like wheelchair accessible bathrooms, a spacious kitchen and a guest room that can be used for a live-in caretaker. the housemates pool their resources to cover costs, bardswich estimates her monthly costs at $1,100.while $1,100 is not affordable for everyone, its considerably cheaper than a ltc facility in ontario — the long stay semi-private option is $2,280.04 per month.co-housing can be difficult due to zoning bylaws but legislation put forth in 2019 called the golden girls act, named after bardswich and her fellow co-owners, aims to make it easier for seniors to create co-housing.
dementia villages are communities of care designed to give their residents freedom and choice within a safe and supporting environment.the first dementia village in the world opened in 2009 in the netherlands. the hogeweyk is an intentionally designed village with 23 houses for 152 seniors living with dementia. the village has a bar, restaurant, theatre, grocery store, streets and gardens for residents to use and enjoy. it is publicly funded and runs on a budget comparable to conventional nursing homes.providence living in partnership with island health will open canada’s first publicly funded dementia village care model in comox, b.c. with construction starting this year, it will feature smaller households that support freedom of movement, access to nature and connection with the community.candace chartier, president and ceo of providence living, explains that this village concept is not just about the physical design but encompasses a shift in the model of care in which residents, staff, family members work together to create a home environment where residents can thrive.these examples show potential for the future of ltc in canada — the challenge is to make them the new standard of care instead of a patchwork of services that result in wait lists, drive-up health care costs and create confusion for seniors and their caregivers.canada’s ltc can become a human-centred system that helps seniors get the care they need. but first we need to make humane, dignified care for seniors a top priority.sarah tranum is an associate professor of social innovation design in the faculty of design at ocad university.this article is republished from the conversation under a creative commons license. read the original article.
'our spending is way out of line compared to many european and scandinavian countries which do a much better job of supporting people staying in their own homes,' says advocate.
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