
Connection, housing and care: Redefining caring for older adults
Coming of Age: Meeting the needs of our aging populationShow Notes
How can we plan communities of care that work across diverse settings, while balancing the immediate needs of today’s older adults with planning for future generations?
In this episode, we explore redefining seniors’ care. From balancing immediate needs with long-term planning to fostering models of care that prioritize connection, housing and care, this conversation highlights the power of bold ideas and local leadership.
Listen as Donna Duncan sits down with Aimée Foreman, aging care advisor and CEO of Silvermark based in New Brunswick, Canada. Discover how a small province with big ideas is charting a path toward a better future for seniors.
Resources: Tamarack Institute Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) in Canada interRAI collaborative network of researchers and practitioners in over 35 countries committed to promoting evidence-informed clinical practice and policy decision-making In our discussion, Aimée mentions innovative models of care across Canada and around the world. Learn more about these programs: Nursing Home Without Walls initiative created in New Brunswick, now receiving support from Healthcare Excellence Canada to spread and scale iGen Intergenerational Learning Classroom, a grade 6 classroom embedded into the Sherbrooke Community Centre in British Columbia The Oromocto development project recently announced in New Brunswick that will be constructed with four households, 15 residents per household. Humanitas Deventer and their student live-in program in the Netherlands The Hogeweyk Dementia Village in the Netherlands Trent University Integrated Seniors Village in partnership with peopleCare Communities development project (and listen to our podcast episode here) University of Calgary Brenda Strafford Centre on Aging
This episode was generously sponsored by our Sector Champion, StaffStat.
More from Coming of Age: Meeting the needs of our aging population
Canada is aging, and that asks all of us to think differently about care, our communities and what it truly means to age well. Season 6 of Coming of Age brings researchers, policy leaders, residents and families into conversation about the choices, practical ideas and lived experiences shaping the future of aging and care.
Care doesn’t start with policy — it starts with people.
Five years ago, Coming of Age launched during a global pandemic that exposed deep fractures in how we care for older adults. For this milestone episode, host Donna Duncan reunites with our very first guest, award-winning journalist and author Moira Welsh to reflect on progress, persistent challenges and the future of aging in Ontario.
Ontario is home to more than 330,000 people living with dementia today, a number expected to reach one million within a generation. Behind these staggering statistics are real people navigating profound changes in cognition, communication, and identity.
In long-term care, the workforce is the heart of every home. When we invest in long-term care as essential economic infrastructure, we not only provide compassionate care, we also strengthen Ontario’s GDP, create recession-proof jobs and provide reliable support for our aging population.