Nurses are the eyes and ears of health care. We bear witness to the triumphs and suffering of seniors, as they make up much of the population we care for. Today we want to talk about three issues. First is housing as a social determinant of health. Second is wraparound home care that allows seniors to age well in place. Third is dying well.
Social determinants of health are those conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work, age, and die. We urge you to view housing as a social determinant of health, because unsuitable housing contributes to considerable differences in quality of life among Canadian seniors. Inadequate housing can lead to negative consequences, including the onset of disease and the worsening of chronic conditions.
Nurses assess home environments regularly for potential challenges faced by seniors, such as snowy sidewalks, unsafe lighting, unhygienic environments, or something as simple as stairs or clutter. However, our assessment goes beyond the physical structure to those things that transform a house into a home, allowing seniors to thrive and flourish in place.
Through the lens of housing as a social determinant of health, a nurse may also consider the location of one's home in terms of access to reliable, affordable, safe transportation not only to medical appointments, but to social outings and for access to their hobbies and interests.
Addressing housing for seniors then must, in policy, be multi-sectoral, considering how housing shapes all aspects of positive aging. The development of a seniors strategy has to practically assist, through provision for maintenance, upkeep, or renovations.
Volunteer driving programs and affordable public transportation will also support seniors to remain in their home. As Pat Armstrong highlighted in her presentation to this committee last month, social inclusion cannot happen if a senior is socially isolated in their residence.
We urge this committee to recognize housing to be a social determinant of health as a necessity to advancing inclusion and quality of life for seniors. This is an upstream approach, requiring a health-in-all-policies strategy to improve health outcomes and quality of life for seniors. An upstream approach will prove more cost-effective than paying downstream for the negative health consequences of poor housing and social isolation.