When you read the brief we submitted on advancing inclusion and quality of life for Canadian seniors, our colleague shared a story in there about caring for both of her aging parents, one in Canada and one in Scotland, both with advanced dementia. The level of home care, support, and social inclusion that was considered and funded and supported by her neighbourhood and her community allowed her mother to age well in place in Scotland, avoid hospitalization, and remain in her home despite critical advancing dementia. By contrast, her father-in-law in Canada did not have nearly as good and positive an outcome. To think upstream we must shift, as Mr. McDonald suggested, from a hospital-based model—these institutions of isolation—to a more wellness-oriented, community-based model that supports an attitude of inclusivity and age-friendly communities.
On November 7th, 2017. See this statement in context.