An Update from Jane & Nathalie: Fall Newsletter

Jane’s GTA Cafe – A blog about life in the community for those in need of care and their families, and much more….

Thank you to our Personal Support Workers, Nurses and Client Services who enable the abilities and lives of the people we look after. Thank you to operations and administration for supporting us and our community facing employees for keeping our eyes on the bigger picture.  Thank you to our clients and families for their ongoing support, this has been of immense importance.  Thank you to those organizations in our communities we interact with for your support and collaboration. For each of you we would like to say “especially”, to signify your monumental importance.  We would also like to extend heartfelt thanks to members of staff we have let go in the face of a difficult environment.

In the new world organizations are coming together to, improve the way we do things in health care. We would like to highlight a) The International Federation on Ageing (IFA) and their weekly web-based Town Hall Meetings on COVID-19 and older people, b) the International Long-Term Care Policy Network for their online webinars, c) the Family Councils Collaborative Alliance (especially Wendy Francis) for their Podcast series on Long Term Care, d) The Alzheimer’s Society of Toronto and Shrid Dhungel who hosts the COVID-19 Community Partner update that brings together organizations to share experiences and knowledge, e) Kitty Liu and the “IPAC and COVID-19” Team from Sunnybrook Health Sciences and North York General Hospital (Diana Adams and Dr. Lamb) for their infection prevention and control supports to community facing organisations. 

By appointment only, our community resource centers will soon be open for information on resources in the community.  Our Markham office we will be open every Thursday from October 1^st and our Armour Heights Toronto Office will be open every day from September 8^th (9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.).  We continue to provide events and activities in the current on-line format for the time being, with the exception of outdoor pole walking.

Some notable upcoming online events include a National Seniors Day (October 1^st) performance by the Theatre in the Web troupe titled “Threads of our Past”, the online First Link® Memory Café “How Healthy is your brain” with Andrea Ubell, Alzheimer’s Society York Region, a falls prevention program with Judy Chu, a musical experience with Brian Katz, an art discussion with artist Donna Zekas and a “The Roaring Twenties” event presented by Lianne Harris.

Dr. Daren Heyland, a critical care doctor and Professor of Epidemiology and Medicine at Queen’s (Kingston Ontario) will be presenting on his www.planwellguide.com an important decision aid to support decision making in serious illness on 17^th November.  You will find all these events in our Fall newsletter or online at www.mosaichomecare.com. Our 10 Year Anniversary celebrations will be deferred until a time in 2021 when we can safely gather to celebrate.

We remain vigilant over the risks of COVID-19 and note our infection prevention and control protocols governing personal protective equipment and their use, procedures for coordinating caregivers, and our screening and contact tracing for COVID-19 risks.  In this time we remain in regular close supportive contact with our front-line staff and our clients and families.  Fortunately to date we have had no COVID-19 positive clients nor COVID-19 positive front-line teams.  As always when providing care our primary objective is to facilitate a person’s intrinsic physical, social and emotional capacities. 

Finally, we raise concern again over what is happening in long term care homes.  Persons remain separated from families and friends and the special care and attention they provide.  Most care homes are still under-staffed and under resourced.  Basic care needs and fundamental human rights are being neglected.  As social beings dependent on others we need to take responsibility for what is happening and to change the system to put people first. 

Here are the links to the Family Councils Collaborative Alliance Podcasts:

Here is the link to the full set of Family Councils Collaborative Alliance Podcasts – https://soundcloud.com/user-384632250