The Ministry of Health launched a program on July 31 that delivers high-tech help to seniors so they can stay in their homes or apartments longer before having to move to residential care.
However, the new program has been operating in Delta since January as a pilot program in which KinVillage is serving as the support hub.
The Long-Term Care At Home program equips seniors’ houses and apartments with technology to allow virtual care and monitoring by a care team. The program is like the long-term care residence monitoring and watches for falls, medication adherence, activity levels, wandering and vital signs.
“This new program will provide comfort and assurance to seniors and their families by delivering the quality health care needed to age in place,” said Harwinder Sandhu, Parliamentary Secretary for Seniors’ Services and Long-Term Care in a news release. “This virtual program will empower seniors to age in the comfort of their own homes.”
Some of the technology involved includes a tablet for connecting seniors to virtual programs, a wearable pendant or wall-mounted device for fall detection, two-way emergency calls, and sensors throughout the home.
The program also includes respite care to help alleviate family caregiver burnout, extending their ability to care for a loved one in the home longer.
At KinVillage for instance, seniors in the program can stay in a respite suite for short periods, giving caregivers a break.
KinVillage is the support hub for the service in the pilot program in which 11 seniors currently are enrolled. Long-term care personnel within KinVillage can reach out to seniors and help where needed.
The combination of devices used is tailored to the seniors’ home and health needs, ensuring they are safe wherever they are in their homes, said the release from the Ministry of Health.
The goal is to expand to other communities around B.C. over the next year and a half and to support more than 2,700 seniors and caregivers. The program is paid for via the Canada-B.C. Aging with Dignity Agreement which provides up to $47 million over four years.
“We know seniors want the choice to age in the comfort of their own homes, close to family, friends and neighbours. This initiative will extend services typically only available in long-term care homes to older adults living in the community, supporting the desire for more independent living, while potentially reducing pressure on other areas of the health-care system,” said Dan Levitt, B.C.’s seniors advocate.
Levitt also used to be the CEO of KinVillage until his appointment as seniors advocate in January.
The LTC@Home program is designed to support seniors who feel this is a viable solution for them, and whose care needs meet at least one of the following:
* on or eligible for long-term care wait list and is living at home with a primary caregiver (family or friend);
* on or eligible for assisted living wait list and is living at home; or
* living at home with or without a primary caregiver and is capable of managing daily activities, but is at risk of isolation, at an elevated risk of a fall, or would benefit from vitals monitoring and/or medication dispensing.
