Ontario expanding community access to long-term care services

Lee Griffi, Editor

The Ontario government is expanding the Community Access to Long-Term Care program to Woodstock’s Woodingford Lodge.

“Our government is protecting our long-term care system by getting people the right care in the right place,” said Natalia Kusendova-Bashta, Minister of Long-Term Care. “Providing services at long-term care homes to people in the community helps them age comfortably in their own homes, while giving them access to the services they need.”

Following the launch of the first round in September of last year, the program helps people on the long-term care waitlist, those eligible for long-term care and those who will soon become eligible, access services in the community while living at home, including clinical and personal care, nursing support, dementia care and wound care.

“Woodingford Lodge has been selected as one of three Ontario long-term care homes to participate in Year 2 of the Community Access to Long-Term Care (CALTC) Pilot Program, receiving $1,067,645 in funding,” said Mark Dager, Director of Long-Term Care.

“The investment expands the Adult Day Program to seven days a week and enhances access to physiotherapy, personal care and bathing, foot and hair care, health and wellness education, and caregiver supports. These services will support seniors awaiting long-term care to remain safely in the community longer, reduce caregiver strain, reduce ED visits, and support smoother transitions to long-term care,” he added.

The other two sites are Craigholme in Ailsa Craig near London and Four Seasons Lodge in Deep River.

"Woodingford Lodge is proud to expand our role beyond the walls of long-term care and bring our expertise, services and supports directly to people living in our community,” Dager said.

The funding will include hiring one support service worker, two personal support workers and two recreational aides. The current Adult Day Program supports 13 to 15 people on a daily basis. Currently, there are 80 people on the wait list.

“The original concept and scope for the Family Transition Program, the first program of its kind in Canada, was in 2018. In 2022, through support from the provincial Local Priorities Fund and recognition of the value of offering this model of care, the Adult Day Program launched as a pilot to provide care to seniors in the community waiting for long-term care placement,” explained Dager.

“During the program’s first year, these sites delivered more than 10,000 visits for clinical care, personal support, and social and recreational programming, helping more seniors receive the care they need while remaining safely in their own homes,” said an Ontario press release.

The project is part of the Ontario government’s broader plan to build 58,000 new and upgraded long-term care beds across the province.

To qualify for Community Access to Long-Term Care, people must be on a long-term care waiting list, eligible for long-term care, or be eligible for long-term care in the near future. For information on eligibility and how to apply, contact Woodingford Lodge.