This newsletter is designed to create connections across the Long-Term Care and Assisted Living sector at Vancouver Coastal Health. It is an opportunity to share best practice and innovations, celebrate successes and get to know what our colleagues are doing at VCH, and beyond, to bring to reality our vision of Living meaningfully in community with Dignity, Connection and Well-Being. We want to build our COMMUNITY, so please share this newsletter widely and send us your stories! | Over the last 2 years, the Connections newsletter has aimed to bring stories to the long-term care and assisted living sector that celebrate great work and inspire us to take the next steps forward. With each new year, we have strived to bring the voices of those living in long-term care ever more to the forefront. It is their stories, their experiences, and their hopes that teach the sector where change is needed. This newsletter moved from telling stories about residents, to stories from the resident's perspective. Now, residents will be in the drivers seat, guiding what stories are told and what topics are covered in this newsletter. As you will see in their introductions below, the residents on this new editorial committee are united by a drive to make change. If you are a resident or know of a resident who would be interested in being a part of this committee, please email VCH-LTC-Connections@vch.ca. |  Marg. Originally from Fredericton, N.B., I have lived in many places across Canada, including St. John’s NF, Montreal, Edmonton, Vancouver and now the Sunshine Coast. At McGill, I completed a Masters in Educational Psychology, specializing in Teaching and Learning, and subsequently worked in several colleges and technical institutes in AB and BC, managing large and small depts. After that, I had my own consulting firm for several years and did projects as diverse as evaluating training programs, facilitating economic development programs, and writing grant proposals. I love music and served on the Board of the Pender Harbour Music Society for several years. Since moving to Shorncliffe, I have served on the Residents Council and now am representing Shorncliffe on the VCH Regional Council for Residents and Families. I’m excited to be on the committee to stay in touch with others outside the home and to share ideas and concerns.
|  Lily. My name is Lily, short for Raffaella Angela, but most people call me by my nickname. I was born in beautiful British Columbia and currently reside at Minoru Residence. I have a variety of interests, including reading, doing crosswords and word searches, coloring, and painting. I also used to enjoy roller and ice-skating with my late husband. I love being in a group and having fun with other people, which is why I enjoy participating in most of the home's activities. As a member of the resident council, I am committed to staying active in the community and giving back. I joined this newsletter to learn about other care homes and what they do, and to share our experiences, as I believe it's essential to stay connected and continue learning from one another.
|  Ebe. I was born in Sweden and moved to Toronto when I was 5. I obtained a degree in physical and occupational therapy from the University of Toronto. For a time, I lived in Whistler, working as a manager at The Keg restaurant. While living there, I enjoyed skiing and all of the outdoor activities that come with the area. I am excited to be a part of this newsletter as I am encouraged to make change and offer my help wherever I can.
|  Allan. I am a mechanical engineer who graduated from Ryerson University. I was born and raised in Toronto, where I developed a passion for hockey that would stay with me throughout my life. I played professional hockey in the United States where I had the opportunity to meet and be mentored by Bobby Hull. In 1986, I started my own business (Demco Building Consultants) which I still run to this day. Along the way, I also obtained my pilot license. When I wasn’t busy with work, I enjoyed playing hockey, golfing, and boating. Now, at Minoru, I am an active member of both the resident council at my home and the VCHRegional Resident and Family Council. Being on this committee is another way that I can use my voice to make positive change and improvement for all of us in long-term care.
|  Charlene. I was born and raised in the beautiful city of Winnipeg, Manitoba. I spent 25 wonderful years working for Air Canada before moving onto other jobs, most recently at Nordstrom in Vancouver. My hobbies include swimming, gardening, strolling through parks with friends, travelling, and I have a special place in my heart for poodle dogs. During my time at Air Canada, I volunteered for the Air Canada Recreation Association and led a successful fundraising campaign that raised enough money to start a gym. Giving back to my community is important to me. I’m excited to use this opportunity with the newsletter committee to connect people, make friends and bring about positive change.
|  Randi. I was born in New Westminster and grew up in Maple Ridge where I attended school before moving on to Simon Fraser University in the 70s to study English Literature. In my spare time, I enjoy reading and watching YouTube videos. I have a deep desire to help and stay active in my community, which is why I love playing Bingo and bowling, attending concerts, and volunteering my time on the council. Recently, I joined this newsletter to bring residents together at the homes as they are isolated, and I believe that social connection is important for a thriving community. In the past, I worked as a cashier, but my true passion lies in being involved and giving back to my community.
|  VCH Regional Resident and Family Council
On March 30, 2023 thirty residents and family members, representing almost half of our long-term care homes, met for the first meeting of the VCH Regional Resident and Family Council. Participants shared their ideas on improvements they would like to see in long-term care including returning to pre-COVID visitation policies, increasing the variety of activities provided, improving the quality of food, introducing more relational care models and an emphasis on emotional well-being. The group is now in the process of selecting a resident or family co-chair based on Expressions of Interest from group members. The co-chair will help facilitate future meetings of the Regional Council and will join the VCH regional lead in June at the Provincial Resident and Family Forum with the Ministry of Health and other Health Authorities. |  Bringing the resident's voice to the C.A.R.E. Experience
 The VCH Experience in Care Program and Minoru Residence long-term care created the “C.A.R.E. Experience Bundle” tool to shift care conferences from a medical focus to person-centred care. This bundle supports teams to involve residents and families in their annual care conference to discuss what matters most to them and improve their experiences. This video highlights the voices of residents, families, and staff who were impacted by this project.
You can watch the video here: https://vimeo.com/811451849 To learn more about this Care Conference Project and the C.A.R.E. Experience Bundle, please contact the VCH Experience in Care Program: experience@vch.ca Project Team: Ada Chow, Lindsay Fleet, Shawna Fu, Charles Gali, Jasjit Gill, Courtney Hoffman and Florence Yip |  Opportunity | Uplifting the Hearts of Health Care
Do you have an uplifting story to share to show collaboration that occurs daily to support meaningful living and quality of life? Rosemary Dunne, Executive Director at Broadway Lodge is working with her colleage Jo-Anne Harrison to produce an exciting new book that will be uplifing and helpful to our care communities. For their new book, Uplifting the Hearts of Health Care: Moving beyond compassion fatigue through stories of love, laughter and care, they are seeking stories from residents, families or staff. If you have a story that touched your heart, taught you lessons, raised your spirit, brought humour or lightened your journey, you can submit it here: https://rosemarydunne.com/new-book-announcement |  Resource | Family Council Association
While it is ideal for residents to be able to speak for themselves, we know there are a significant proportion of residents who rely on those around them to advocate for their needs. When Family Council and care homes have relationships which are respectful and collaborative, benefits exist for all involved. Family councils promote person centred care, help establish meaningful connections and relationships throughout the care home and advocate for resident quality of life. The Independent Long-Term Care Councils Association of BC is available to support existing or emerging councils by way of the regional associations of family councils in each health authority. These regional associations provide guidance on starting a council, provide mentoring, support, tools and resources and assist with troubleshooting as it relates to specific issues. To contact the Vancouver Coast Association of Family Councils, you can email vcafc.regional@gmail.com. | .png) Research| Residents' involvement in practice improvements
"The opportunity to set the agenda, instead of having professionals define what needs to be done and how, is a valuable experience for people who reside in LTC settings." This study describes a process in which seniors in long-term care homes in the Netherlands joined a collective agenda-setting project. It found that the topics most important to residents were common across the country, and beyond, such as: feeling at home, social contacts between residents, independence, maintaining own hobbies and lifestyle, being informed, and food. The study found that learning to listen to residents' stories is very important in order to understand the meaning behind a request: a crucial difference from the use of quantitative surveys. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0890406514000450 |  Inspiration | #ElderWisdom Podcast
"The greatest untapped resource in Canada, if not the world, is the collective wisdom of our elders." #ElderWisdom | Stories from the Green Bench is a podcast that invites us all to sit alongside a senior and share a conversation. Created by Schlegel homes, this podcast reminds us of the wealth of wisdom our elders offer and challenges the stigma seniors face. https://schlegelvillages.com/news/elderwisdom-podcast | Home Profile: Shorncliffe Care Home by Marg Penney  Shorncliffe Care Home is one of two care homes on the Sunshine Coast operated by Vancouver Coastal Health. There are 59 single rooms of which 6 are adjoining. This includes 10 special care rooms, 2 community respite rooms, and 2 hospice rooms with a family room.
There is a large lounge on the first floor which is used for activities during the week organized by the recreation and rehab staff. Volunteers from the community help out with all these activities (especially birthday parties!). We have nurses and care aides who provide 24-hour care and for the last few years we have had HCAP students (training to become care aides) here, learning and doing their practicum work with us. Like other homes, we are experiencing staff shortages and travelling nurses and care aides come in to help out. Even with them, staff shortage is still a problem and some staff are picking up extra shifts. If someone calls in sick they put out a call for someone to fill in and someone comes in to work an extra shift. I’ve even joked with them that some of them don’t understand the word “no”. We have a Residents Council which has been meeting once a month and we are now.jpg) welcoming family members to join us for some of the residents who cannot speak for themselves. We have a suggestion box and residents, visitors, and staff are encouraged to put ideas in there. They are typed up and brought to the Residents Council meeting for discussion. We have lovely garden areas outside which community volunteers help maintain and in the summer we have activities out there – even the occasional BBQ! A new facility is being built in Sechelt by the for-profit company Trellis. In Jan. 2024, we and the residents of our sister facility, Totem Lodge, will all be moving there. |  Vaccine Campaign
Across the Vancouver Coastal Health region, Long-Term Care & Assisted Living sites were ready for spring with fresh boosters beginning April 11th, 2023. This marks the sixth booster season for Covid-19 Immunizations. VCH’s contracted partner sites were the first to start off, with Rosewood Manor, Hollyburn House and Renfrew Care Centre beginning on launch day. Despite staffing challenges and the growing needs of our older adult populations, site staff worked hard to ensure all eligible persons were protected against this season’s strain. The campaign continues across the region until May 31st, 2023. We thank everyone for their hard work and continued care in protecting our vulnerable communities, including older adult populations. For more information about Covid-19 boosters, please visit the BCCDC website. | | | | |
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