Whereas the Town of Whitby and Region of Durham are facing a rapidly aging population, with complex health and wellness needs;
And Whereas caregivers, faced with the inordinate challenge of securing, coordinating and overseeing the care of their loved ones from a multitude of providers, are experiencing burnout and increasing sense of hopelessness;
And Whereas the vast majority of Ontarians want to age in place in their own home and community, but are challenged finding the supports to do so;
And Whereas while Town of Whitby and Region of Durham residents wish to age in place, a lack of resources is pressing residents to institutional care, such as hospitals and long-term care. In the next 10 years, the demand for long-term care in the Region is projected to increase by 38%. In the Region, the median number of days people waiting to move into a long-term care home was 260 days – 30% higher than the provincial median;
And Whereas Community Care Durham has been a long-standing and trusted non-profit health and social services provider in Whitby, offering a vast array of services such as Assisted Living, Transportation, Day Programs, Meal and Food Security, Mental Wellness supports, and other services;
And Whereas Community Care Durham is seeking Provincial and Regional support to implement a new program – OneConnect – that is modeled after the U.S.A.’s Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE). This program coordinates comprehensive health and wellness services around vulnerable clients (e.g., those awaiting placement in long-term care) living in the community in order to help them and their caregivers live optimally at home, in the community;
And Whereas other Ontario municipalities are looking to support the adoption of PACE-like models, including municipalities in the Region (Ajax, Scugog, Pickering);
And Whereas implementation of Community Care Durham’s OneConnect program in Whitby would benefit residents, while alleviating demands on local hospitals and related healthcare institutions;
And Whereas Goal 9 of the Age-Friendly Whitby Action Plan adopted in 2017 is to ensure that Seniors have access to supports in order to help them maintain their homes and age in place;
And Whereas Community Care Durham is publicly funded by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care through Ontario Health – East Region, and requires new funding to implement OneConnect.
Now therefore, be it resolved:
- That Whitby Council supports Community Care Durham’s vision for implementing OneConnect in Whitby and the Region of Durham;
- That Whitby Council encourages the Government of Ontario to provide the necessary funding to Community Care Durham to implement, evaluate and scale OneConnect to meet the growing needs of the Region of Durham;
- That Town of Whitby Staff continue to assist the Region of Durham and Community Care Durham in future site-planning for expanded Day Program services, and identification of Whitby neighbourhoods where there are a high proportion of at risk adults that could benefit from this comprehensive model; and,
- That a copy of this motion be sent to the Honourable Sylvia Jones, Minister of Health, Lorne Coe, MPP for Whitby, the Honourable Natalia Kusendova-Bashta, Minister of Long-Term Care, John Henry, Regional Chair and CEO of the Regional Municipality of Durham, the Durham Regional Health and Social Services Committee, the Durham Regional Local Housing Corporation, all Durham Region lower tier municipalities, Cynthia Davis, President and CEO of Lakeridge Health, Lisa Kitchen, Director of the Durham Ontario Health Team, and Matt Anderson, President & CEO of Ontario Health.