Category: Innovative Models

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Webinar: Humanizing dementia care in long-term care

On January 11th, 2023, Family Councils Ontario and CARP Ottawa featured a webinar on the Hogeweyk Model. And so, for our August webinar, we invite you to watch the following “recorded’ presentation. The insights which Aimee Foreman shared in 2023 remain equally relevant today in changing long-term care homes from ‘institutions to homes’.

Speaker: Aimee Foreman:  As the founder and former CEO of Silvermark Company, she developed a team that shares a commitment to championing the needs and preferences of older adults. Together, they guided aging care leaders to impact-driven decisions that improve quality of life. She has visited homes, and examined care models, around the world to understand challenges and opportunities from all perspectives – policymakers, providers, caregivers, families, and older adults themselves.

Click here to watch: https://youtu.be/ITnsVvYcEf0

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The Glebe Centre’s journey of becoming a Butterfly LTC Home

Photographed Susan Zorz, Director of Resident Operations and Compliance (Right) and Emma Tibbo, Chief Executive Officer (Left)

In their article on the Glebe Centre’s journey, Rachel Lithopoulos and Michelle Fleming point out that ‘It’s been 8 years since The Glebe Centre began this journey as described by Susan Zorz, Director of Resident Operations and Compliance, and Emma Tibbo, Chief Executive Officer.’

‘Susan and Emma recognize that culture change can be challenging in LTC. Emma shared that one of the biggest challenges is shifting mindsets. People working in LTC homes are working in challenging times, with staffing shortages, and increasing complexity of resident care needs. Often, there is a ‘task-focused’ sense of pressure that persists due to the circumstances and realities. Susan explained, “It’s never going to be perfect and you’re never going to be done but it’s taking on manageable pieces”. ‘

‘For these culture change efforts to be most impactful, everyone needs to be included in the process. Emma and Susan emphasized that these steps have been taken in consultation with residents, caregivers, team members, leaders and the Board of Directors. Engagement with residents and caregivers is particularly important, and the home has spent time working with the Residents’ Council, Family Council, and hosting family information nights.’

To learn more about the Centre’s journey, click here

*Written by: Rachel Lithopoulos, Knowledge Broker, Ontario CLRI at Bruyère Health and Michelle Fleming, Senior Knowledge Broker, Ontario CLRI at Bruyère Health.

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Webinar: What does emotion based care look like in practice?

In 2025, MOLTC launched a 3- year funding project focusing on emotion-based care. In the first year, 17 LTC Homes received funding. For our June webinar, we invite you to watch the following webinar:

Presenter: Sally Knocker, Meaningful Care Matters

Sally is a consultant for Meaningful Care Matters, bringing over 35 years of experience in older people’s care. She is passionate about creating person centered environments, particularly through The Butterfly Approach which emphasizes emotional intelligence and creating meaningful connections among residents. Sally advocates for a culture of care that values the unique stories of each individual, ensuring their emotional needs are as important as their physical needs. Her work focuses on transforming care settings to foster joy and connection among residents and staff alike.

Click here to watch the webinar: https://youtu.be/yOt-fh_qbBw?t=6

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Designing for Living, Not Managing

A green house dining room (copied with permission)

As the experiences of Ontario’s long term care homes where an innovative model of care has been implemented can attest, designing for living is a significant factor to consider when changing long-term care homes from ‘institutions to homes’.

Environment has shown time and time again with qualitative studies that it is so important to the quality of life of seniors living in long-term care homes.  Among the environmental aspects to be considered are ‘real’ kitchens, small households, and access to the outdoors.

Many long-term care homes in Ontario are leading the way – e.g. Glebe Centre, Temiskaming Lodge, Malton Village, and the list goes on.

Please advocate for the implementation of innovative models of care, of which ‘designing for the living’, plays an important role.

 

 

 

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Another ‘Village’ Initiative

The Village Langley, B.C.

‘Agrace’s Dementia Village will be the first of its kind in the United States.  It is being modelled after the internationally recognized Hogeweyk Dementia Village in the Netherlands’.  It is being built in Madison, Wisconsin.

The first Village of this model in Canada was established in Langley, B.C.  a few years ago. Subsequently, also in B.C., Providence Living established its first Village and is now in the process of implementing the Village model for all its long-term care home beds.  Where there’s a will, there’s a way- in both the for profit and not-for-profit long-term care home sectors.

Please encourage your MPP to advocate for a provincial strategic plan in Ontario to bring innovative models of care to its long-term care homes.  This change can’t come soon enough.

Read more here:

 

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Providence Living in B.C. and the Right Model

Providence Living is fulfilling its plan to embrace the implementation of the innovative long-term care village model into its long-term care facilities.

Providence Living at the Views in Comox, B.C. opened its doors in 2024 to the first of its non-profit long-term care homes to benefit from the innovative village model.

Now their second village home is in the making: Providence Living at The Rivers set to open in early 2028.  “This project represents a complete reimagining of what long-term care can and should be,” said Mark Blandford, president and CEO, Providence Living. “We’re creating a community where northern B.C. seniors can live with dignity, joy and purpose through our innovative long-term care village and Home for Us care model.”

Two more homes are planned for the future, one in Quesnel expected to start later this year, and the other in Smithers, expected to start in 2028.

Read more

 

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Testing the ‘Village’ model: the right way to go!

 

Residents and day-program participants at Langley Village (Dillon Hodgin/CBC)

 It is worth taking note of a CBC News article by reporters Shaurya Kshatri and Yasmine Ghania, December 26th, 2025:  “Inside a B.C. ‘dementia village’ that researchers hope could reshape long-term care”.

Langley Village opened in 2019 and about 75 residents live full time at The Village Langley in its six cottage-style homes.

“The Village is now part of a new research project led by Simon Fraser University (SFU) in B.C. and McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont., which aims to understand what this kind of setting actually does for people with dementia and find ways to replicate some of its elements across the country.”

“The research team’s goal is to provide evidence that can inform future policy to promote and implement innovative approaches in long-term care that will create a normalized and naturally rich, supportive care community,” says SFU Professor Chaudhury.

We look forward to learning from the findings of their research.

Click here to read the full article –

 

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Recording: Citizenship and Wellbeing in Long-Term Care

Webinar Recording Now Available. 
Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Dec 10 webinar, “Citizenship and Wellbeing in Long-Term Care”. If you weren’t able to attend live—or would like to revisit the discussion—you can watch the full recording below.

Presenters: Reanne Evans, Neighbourhood Manager and Person-Directed Lead, Tideview Terrace, Digby, NS
Debra Boudrea, CEO, Tideview Terrace
Ariel Rice, Neighbourhood Manager and Enrichment Lead, Tideview Terrace

Listen to recording here

For more past webinars and recordings, visit our Webinars page.

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The Power of Home

A Green House Dining Room (copied with permission)
A Green House Dining Room (copied with permission)

What if a long-term care home felt like…….home?

Not an institution
Not a schedule
Not a number
Just home.

  • Small households
  • Consistent staff
  • Real relationships
  • Real kitchens, real meals, real life.

That’s how the Green House model works, as do other innovative models of care. Ontario deserves this. Our elders deserve this.

Contact your MPP to advocate to make this happen.

‘Institutions to homes’  – check out our website www.changeltcnow.ca.

 

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Sunnyside Adventist Care Centre: Changing one step at a time!

The journey of Sunnyside Adventist Care Centre in Saskatoon from “institution to home” started nine years ago and continues to this day!

In the beginning, when Sunnyside decided to change into the Eden Alternative Care model, they focused on trying to maintain consistent staffing. Building relationships between staff and residents was key to making the change happen. The staff realized that they needed to spend time “listening” to their residents and stop focussing so much on tasks.

They renamed their “wings” to neighborhoods and gave them recognizable names that would mean something to the residents and staff. The names Diefenbaker, Riverview, and Prairie Land were used based on name recognition and views of the outdoors. Then they removed the nursing station! This transition was not easy for staff, but the change provided more space for gathering spaces and started to make Sunnyside look like a home! Changing signage, adding lounges, artwork, creating a spa-like tub room all contributed to this feeling of “home”.

With assistance from Montgomery Sisam, architects, Sunnyside is working on a Master Plan to modernize and expand spaces so that every resident enjoys more autonomy, privacy and belonging.

To read more, click here: Sunnyside A Little Bit of our StoryOct 2025

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Corrected blog: Ontario Government Invests in Dementia Care

 

Canadian Association of Retired Persons (CARP) congratulates the Ontario Government on its $9 million investment for Dementia Care in long-term care homes.

“This initiative could be a game changer and is an important step forward in building a stronger, more compassionate long-term care home system” notes Kathy Wright, Chair of CARP’s Advocacy Working Group on Long-Term Care. “As advocates for seniors and their families, we welcome this targeted investment in emotion-based care.”    Read more:   

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