|
 IFA - eNews
|
|
|
Sharing Stories, Sharing Knowledge |
|
Special Feature - A Closer Look at IFA's New Home in Toronto
- Toronto Long-Term Care Homes and Services -
|
In this edition of IFA-eNews, we would like to take the
opportunity to introduce our new home in Toronto. The new headquarters of the IFA Secretariat is
located on an interim basis in Castleview
Wychwood Towers,
which is a long-term care facility with nearly 500 residents. Castleview is one residence in a collective
of ten Toronto-area non-profit facilities operated by the City of Toronto's Long-Term Care Homes
and Services agency.
For more than thirty years, Toronto Long-Term Care Homes and Services has responded to the needs of individuals
requiring long-term care with creative programs and services that help maintain
an active and independent lifestyle with access to all the support and
attention necessary. The mission is to
provide exemplary services to residents and clients that respects, supports and
enables people to be as independent as possible. These facilities aim to be part of an effective
continuum of care for older people, made possible through strong partnerships with other health care
organizations and community partners.
In addition to the residences, Toronto Long-Term Care Homes and Services provide additional services including:
-
programs in dementia care and other specialized medical
needs;
-
a range of community support programs;
-
supportive housing in a number of contracted sites; and
-
homemaking services for people living in their own homes.
Toronto is a very cosmopolitan city, and residents of the ten facilities come from over 45 countries of origin, speak over
100 languages and represent over 50 faith groups. This multi-cultural reality makes it imperative for staff to respect
each person's culture, ethno-racial background, sexual orientation, gender
identity, language, faith practices and traditions. With this in mind, Toronto Long-Term Care Homes and Services works closely
with external partners and stakeholders, including ethnic, cultural and
linguistic communities, community agencies and health care organizations. Indeed, IFA has recently featured some of the progressive program work in regard to diversity in the March edition of IFA-eNews, noting the launch of an LGBT Care Strategy.
In addition to the interim headquarters at Castleview Wychwood
Towers the IFA has
offices within the Peter A Silverman Centre for International Health (which
will be featured in the May IFA e-News.
For more information about Castleview Wychwood Towers, and the Toronto Long-Term Care Homes and Services network, please visit their website here.
Below: Residents at Castleview Wychwood Towers
 | |
|
|
|
|
|
Is Canada
Ready for an Ageing Population?
Special Senate Committee on Aging tables its Final Report
 'Canada
should be doing more to assist its aging population', concluded members of the Special
Senate Committee on Aging within their final report entitled Canada's Aging Population: Seizing the Opportunity (released April 21). In a press conference announcing the report's release, Committee Chair
Senator Sharon Carstairs (seen here) noted that Canada must 'transcend
jurisdictional issues and focus on the needs of its citizens at different
stages in their live.' Addressing the issues of today's seniors has serious implications for the seniors of the future.
This report marks the final phase of a review process that began in 2006 to examine the situation of older Canadians. Since March 2008, the Committee, led by Senator Carstairs, engaged in a series of expert roundtable hearings, and traveled throughout Canada to hear from Canadians themselves on the issues and options available for older people. The report builds on their feedback and sets out five over-arching policy recommendations for Canada's
federal government:
-
Take imm
 ediate steps to promote active and healthy aging and
to combat ageism -
Provide leadership and coordination through initiatives such
as a National Integrated Care Initiative, a National Caregiver Strategy, a
National Pharmacare Program, and a federal transfer to address the needs of
provinces with the highest proportion of the aging population;
-
Ensure the financial security of Canadians by addressing the
needs of older workers, pension reform and income security reform;
-
Facilitate the desire of Canadians to age in their place of
choice with adequate housing, transportation, and integrated health and social
care services; and
-
Implement immediate changes for those populations groups for
which it has a specific direct service responsibility, and in relation to Canada's
official language commitments.
The full document can be viewed here. You can visit the Senate Committee's website
for more information here.
|
New IFA Publication: Financial
Protection
A Nine-Country Policy
Review
 The IFA is committed to being a resource on policy
information. In winter 2009, the IFA
finalized a 9-country policy review on Financial Protection. This report provides an overview of the
current policies employed by governments couched within the political context
in which each policy document rests.
Improved understanding of pension policy from an international
perspective through this and other such investigations gives voice to national
policies and provides a rationale for the variety of models that are used, and
their impact on older people. The study
is not intended as a major comparative analysis and indeed, variations in the
nature and scope of policy, as well as the distinct socio-economic and
political positions of the countries included pose numerous methodological
challenges overall.
Also available on the IFA website are PDF copies of the national policies included in this report (where available). The final report is available for download for
IFA members on the IFA website under the members section. |
|
News From Brazil
Report of the Second National Conference on the Rights of Older Persons
The Second National Conference on
the Rights of Older Persons (2NCROP) took place in Brasilia (18-20th March) under the
coordination of Brazilian President Lula's Special Secretary of Human
Rights. Representatives of civil society
organizations and the public entities that form the National Council of Human
Rights of Older Persons worked in close collaboration with
the government to ensure critical elements from the grassroots (using a
bottom-up approach) were formally acknowledged.
The Conference was an inspiring demonstration of how governments can
facilitate and empower civil society.
 "The social, political, economic
and cultural contribution of the older deserves to be seen as indispensable to
the process of transforming Brazil into a more just and socially well-balanced
society; firmly based on the principles of solidarity and mutual respect" noted
Paulo Vannuchi (Special Secretary to the
President on Human Rights) in his opening remarks.
Dr. Alex Kalache, HelpAge International Global Ambassador, and
Dr. Laura Machado, Special Adviser to the President of International Associatoion of Gerontology and Geriatrics (on the left and the right in the photo) kindly provided the IFA
with a detailed report of this important event.
Please download it here.
|
One Voice for Older People
Age Concern and Help the Aged mark their merger with a major
new report
 On April 7 Age Concern England
and Help the Aged held a major policy conference to mark their union as a single new charity dedicated to improving the lives of older
people. One of the key outcomes of this
event was the release of a major new report, entitled One Voice - Shaping our Ageing Society. Age Concern and Help the Aged share a mission
to influence public policy, and One Voice sets out an agenda for action. The focus of this report is on policy recommendations for the
United Kingdom,
but also includes priorities for international leadership on issues relating to
older people.
One Voice is the successor to the annual policy reports
previously published by Age Concern England
and Help the Aged and sets out its new agenda for public policy, based
on a comprehensive analysis of recent developments. Please find the full report here.
|
|
An Inaugural Anniversary
The Older People's Commission for Wales marks its first year on April
21
One year ago, the Older People's Commission for Wales was established to play a leading role in providing the best opportunities for older people in Wales, achieved by seeking out and
listening to older people in every community.
Reflecting on the anniversary and a year of interaction  with older Welsh
citizens, the Older People's Commissioner Ruth Marks (on left) notes some of the key
issues raised and how they have informed the Commission's work.
A central concern for many older people is the issue of
dignity and respect, and two key themes have emerged: The Challenges of living on a fixed income; and Information about and access to services
The Commissioner's aim is to see that older people are
treated fairly, to challenge age discrimination and promote awareness of the
interests of older people in Wales. Please visit the Older People's Commission for Wales website for more
information about the anniversary, the situation of older people in Wales and
important news items.
|
News from Liberia
Liberian leader Madam Ellen Johnson Sirleaf hosts
discussions on strengthening services for older people
The Liberian Associaion of Retired Persons (LARP), an IFA
Member, recently presented Liberian leader Madam Ellen Johnson Sirleaf with a report outlining key
recommendations on how the government can improve the lives of older people in
the country. These recommendations
include the development of a national policy on ageing, creating a national
Department on Ageing, considering ageing within the national budget,
implementing United Nations and African Union policies on ageing, providing
training opportunities for gerontologists, and building housing and care
facilities.
Madame Sirleaf welcomed the recommendations, and has taken them
to be considered in Cabinet as well as promising to hold future consultations on the status of older Liberians with
LARP. Already, there are promising signs with indications from the Ministry of Health
and Social Welfare that a department on ageing will be established
in June 2009.
 Mr. J.Togar Seekpee, Executive Director of LARP (on right) is inviting support in the form of consultations to assist LARP in its
advocacy efforts for older people in Liberia. Mr. Seekpee has promised to keep the IFA updated on developments in Liberia, and we look forward to noting such updates in future communiqués.
|
|
The 14th International Congress of the International
Psychogeriatric Association
1-5 September 2009 ● Montréal, Canada
 With rapid growth of the number of older adults
worldwide, the prevention of late-life mental disorders is a demographic and
economic imperative. The 2009 Montréal Congress - Path to Prevention - will confront the nearly universal assumption
that age-related problems are unavoidable.
This pioneering Congress will ask delegates to consider what
preventative efforts they can already accomplish and to examine what
preventative interventions will become possible in the next few years.
The
Congress Theme - Path to Prevention will continue to be explored with a broad international and interdisciplinary
perspective. Internationally renowned presenters will review the evidence
supporting the rationale for and the impact of, preventative interventions of
late-life depression, dementia, and associated co-morbidities in five plenary
sessions. The meeting will be complete
with numerous symposia, free communication sessions and poster presentations
ranging from the pharmacological to the psychological aspects of the field.
Poster
Presentations are being accepted until 1 July 2009. For more information about the
Congress, and to submit an abstract or to register, please visit the Conference website.
|
|
A Success Story from the World Health Organization in wake
of a Natural Disaster
Eye care for displaced people in the Italian earthquake zone
 In tandem with the International Agency for the Prevention
of Blindness-Italy, the World Health Organization has coordinated the dispatch of a mobile eye care
units to assist the people affected by the disastrous earthquake in the Abruzzo
region of Italy
on the 6th of April. Many citizens lost personal
belongings in the earthquake, including eye glasses and prescription
lenses. Furthermore, structural damage
required the evacuation of the hospital in the town of L'Aquila, meaning eye examinations and
spectacle fittings were urgently needed.
 The quick identification of needs, rapid coordination with local
partners, and private and public cooperation have ensured that eye care
services were restored to the people affected by the earthquake only a few days
after the disaster. More information is available online here.
The IFA acknowledges Dr Tiziano Melchiorre, Secretary General of the IAPB-Italy, for sending us this information and the images.
|
An Important New International Study on Older Adult Care
'The Role of Migrant Care Workers in Ageing Societies: An
International Comparative Research Project'
Many countries rely on the contributions of migrant workers
to deliver care services to their citizens, especially in the provision of care
to older adults. However, research into this
situation and its long and short term implications is scarce. 'The role of migrant care workers in ageing
societies' is an international collaborative research project, involving
Ireland, the UK, Canada and the US - countries which represent an interesting
blend of established and recent immigration.
The aim of the research is to explore the implications of the
recruitment of migrant workers for the delivery of health and social care to
older people, for the living and working conditions of the migrant carers, and
for immigration and integration policies.
For more information, please
use the contact details in the background document for the relevant project
partners. The IFA looks forward
to publicising the results of this research in future communiqués as they
become available.
|
|
New Publication: Latin America's Aging Challenge:
Demographics and Retirement Policy in Brazil,
Chile, and Mexico
Latin America's Aging
Challenge examines the economic, social, and geopolitical implications of the
dramatic demographic transformation that is about to overtake the region. Current demographic trends in the region
indicate that by mid-century, several of Latin America's largest economies will
have older populations than the United
States.
This new report from the Center for Strategic &
International Studies argues that Latin America
has an important-but rapidly narrowing-window of opportunity to prepare for the
aging challenge. If it fails to strengthen its retirement systems and boost
living standards, the age wave could lead to widespread economic hardship and
social instability-even a "humanitarian aging crisis."
To download a PDF copy of the report (and its Spanish and
Portuguese translations), please visit the Center for Strategic & International Studies website here.
|
|
A Friend Indeed: The Bill Sackter Story
An inspiring documentary of interest for agencies who work
with people with disabilities.
Bill Sackter was institutionalized in a United States
mental institution for 44 years because he was deemed 'slow'. Fortunately, through the efforts of a few
individuals, Mr. Sackter was eventually released and went on to live a fruitful
life in his advanced years.
This
remarkable story was recently made into a feature-length documentary that has
won several awards at film festivals around the US and is available in DVD. Visit the official documentary website here.
|
A New Birth
 It is our pleasure to conclude this edition by welcoming a new face into the
world. Noah Samuel Morrissey was born on
April 2nd, and both Noah and his mother, our dear colleague Jacqui, are in good
health and doing very well. The IFA
extends our best wishes to the Noah, Jacqui, Norris and the entire Morrissey family.
| |
