Ontario Making it easier and more convenient to connect to home care

TORONTO — Today, the Ontario government is taking the next step to better connect and coordinate people’s care through Ontario Health Teams. The Convenient Care at Home Act, 2023, if passed, will make Ontario Health Teams responsible for connecting people to home care services starting in 2025.

Working together with Ontario Health, the province has already approved 57 out of 58 Ontario Health Teams across the province that over time will help people experience easier transitions from one provider to another, with one patient record and one care plan being shared between providers. To support this work, the government is investing over $128.2 million to provide every Ontario Health Team with $2.2 million over three years to better coordinate people’s care.

As a next step, today’s legislation, if passed, would establish a new, single organization called Ontario Health atHome that would take on responsibility for coordinating all home care services across the province through Ontario Health Teams. These changes will make it easier for people to connect to the home care services they need. Instead of navigating a complex system and waiting for a call at home, through Ontario Health atHome, Ontario Health Teams will be a one-stop shop that provides people with easy-to-understand home care plans that let them know the care they are going to receive and when before going home from hospital.

https://news.ontario.ca/en/release/1003589/ontario-making-it-easier-and-more-convenient-to-connect-to-home-care

Baycrest’s Rotman Research Institute on Brain Health for Seniors

Take part in a virtual program that may promote your brain health!

Are you 60 years or older, live in Ontario,  and are generally in good health? Do you sometimes feel you lack companionship, left out, or isolated from others? Are you comfortable using a mobile device, a computer, and the internet at home?

If you said yes to all of these questions, you may be eligible for the Mitigating Loneliness in Older Adults (MiLOA) study!

What is Involved in the Study?
After a screening visit, eligible participants will be assigned to a mindfulness meditation or a brain training program using a random process like a flip of a coin. Both programs will be delivered using an app on the participants own smartphone or tablet over 8 weeks. Participants will be asked to complete between 6 and 11 sessions per week, with sessions ranging 5-15 minutes. Participants will retain access to the program for another 16 weeks thereafter, during which they may choose how often to use it.  A total of 5 remote sessions and intermittent surveys will assess immediate and longer-term impacts of the two virtual programs.  Compensation will be provided. This study has received clearance from the Baycrest Research Ethics Board and the McMaster Research Ethics Board.