Seniors Active Living Centers: Promoting Quality of Life Through Active Living for Long-Term Care Residents in Ontario

University of Windsor Scholarship at UWindsor Major Papers Theses, Dissertations, and Major Papers February 2021 Seniors Active Living Centers: Promoting Quality of Life through Active Living for Long-Term Care Residents in Ontario Shahd Ghunim MA [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/major-papers Part of the Community-Based Research Commons, Family, Life Course, and Society Commons, Other Political Science Commons, Place and Environment Commons, and the Political Theory Commons Recommended Citation Ghunim, Shahd MA, "Seniors Active Living Centers: Promoting Quality of Life through Active Living for Long-Term Care Residents in Ontario" (2021). Major Papers. 168. https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/major-papers/168 This Internship Paper is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, and Major Papers at Scholarship at UWindsor. It has been accepted for inclusion in Major Papers by an authorized administrator of Scholarship at UWindsor. For more information, please contact [email protected]. University of Windsor Scholarship and UWindsor Major Papers Theses, Dissertations, and Major Paper 2021 Seniors Active Living Centers: Promoting Quality of Life through Active Living for Long-Term Care Residents in Ontario Shahd Ghunim University of Windsor, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/major-papers Part of the Political Science Commons™ Recommended Citation Ghunim, Shahd, “Seniors Active Living Centers: Promoting Quality of Life through Active Living for Long-Term Care Residents in Ontario.” (2021), Major Papers. https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/major-papers/# This internship Paper is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, and Major Papers at Scholarship at UWindsor. It has been accepted for inclusion in Major Papers by an authorized administrator of Scholarship at UWindsor. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Seniors Active Living Centers: Promoting Quality of Life through Active Living for Long- Term Care Residents in Ontario By Shahd Ghunim An Internship Paper Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies through the Department of Political Science in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for The Degree of Master of Arts at the University of Windsor Windsor, Ontario, Canada 2021 © 2021 Shahd Ghunim Seniors Active Living Centers: Promoting Quality of Life through Active Living for Long- Term Care Residents in Ontario by Shahd Ghunim APPROVED BY: ______________________________________________ R. Major Department of Political Science ______________________________________________ J.Sutcliffe, Advisor Department of Political Science February 1, 2021 DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY I hereby certify that I am the sole author of this thesis and that no part of this thesis has been published or submitted for publication. I certify that, to the best of my knowledge, my thesis does not infringe upon anyone’s copyright nor violate any proprietary rights and that any ideas, techniques, quotations, or any other material from the work of other people included in my thesis, published or otherwise, are fully acknowledged in accordance with the standard referencing practices. Furthermore, to the extent that I have included copyrighted material that surpasses the bounds of fair dealing within the meaning of the Canada Copyright Act, I certify that I have obtained a written permission from the copyright owner(s) to include such material(s) in my thesis and have included copies of such copyright clearances to my appendix. I declare that this is a true copy of my thesis, including any final revisions, as approved by my thesis committee and the Graduate Studies office, and that this thesis has not been submitted for a higher degree to any other University or Institution. iii ABSTRACT This paper demonstrates ideas and initiatives that seek to prove how a Seniors Active Living Center model can take part in ending the long-term care crisis in Ontario in parallel to long-term care facilities. Seniors who are 65 years and older are the fastest growing age group in Ontario, and with such a big number of older adults in need of health care, more pressure is reflected on Ontario’s economy to provide them the proper care that they need; this in turn has led to the long-term care crisis. This crisis is exacerbated by ageism, alleged abuse and mistreatment of older adults, the shortage of health care workers in long-term care facilities, and most recently the COVID-19 Pandemic. The Ontario Government has also acknowledged the long-term care crisis, addressing that an investment in the healthcare sector would be worthwhile. However, the acknowledgment, along with the various studies on the crisis are considered insufficient. This paper discusses solutions that policy makers and Ontario’s community must consider to eliminate the long-term care crisis, especially since situations in long-term care homes are worsening due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Viewed from a rational- institutionalist lens, qualitative methods will be used to research how Ontario could overcome the crisis in long-term care facilities. Overall, it is concluded that the main solution to attain better health care for older adults in Ontario is to invest towards a developed Seniors Active Living Center (SALC) model in parallel to LTC homes with the support of policy makers and community activism. After this model takes off, older individuals’ concerns would be treated in a serious and timely manner with more justice, respect, and consideration. iv DEDICATION I dedicate this work to my mother Hanan, my father Maher, and my only sister Ghayad; for the struggles they had overcome for me to live a convenient life; thank you for supporting and motivating throughout the way. This work is also dedicated to the older adults of Ontario and Canada; may this paper be the bridge to a transformation of reality you longed for since generations. v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am grateful to God for all the blessings he provided me; my health, my family, my strength and perseverance. I would like to thank my advisor Dr. John Sutcliffe for his guidance throughout my placement. A special thanks to my supervisor Dr. Rebecca Major for her expertise, advice, and support throughout this process. A huge thank you to Tracey Bailey and Julie Curtis for offering me the remarkable experience of being part of their team at Community Support Centre. Additionally, thank you to Graduate Secretary Jennifer Forde, the department of Political Science at the University of Windsor, and all my caring professors for this astounding experience. Last but not least, thank you to F.A for his care, support, and encouragement. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLIRATION OF ORIGINALITY…………………………………………………………. iii ABSTRACT…………………………………………………………………………………… iv DEDICATION…………………………………………………………………………………. v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS……………………………………………………………………... vi LIST OF TABLES.……………………………………………………………………………. ix LIST OF FIGURES……………………………………………………………………………. x LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS.……………………………………………………………….... xi CHAPTER 1: Introduction…………………………………………………………………….. 1 1-2 Review of Literature…………………………………………....………………..... 4 1-3 Methodology…………………………………………………………………….... 8 1-4 Chapter Summary……………………………………………………………….... 11 CHAPTER 2: Introduction: Trends and Problems Resulting from the LTC Crisis…………... 12 2-1 Ageism and Discrimination……………………………………………………….. 13 2-2 Shortage of Staff and Care-Giver Burnout in Long-Term Care Homes…………... 14 2-3 Alleged Abuse and Mistreatment in Some Long-Term Care Homes……………... 16 2-4 Chapter Summary………………………………………………………………..... 18 CHAPTER 3: Discussion and Structure …………………………………………………........ 19 3-1 The Impact of COVID-19 on Long-Term Care Homes in Canada………………. 20 3-2 How to Receive Government Funding for a SALC……………………………..... 21 1- The Government of Ontario ……………………………………………..... 22 2- Provincial, Federal or Municipal Government Sources ………………….... 24 3- Sponsors.…………………………………………………………………… 26 3-3 Chapter Summary………………………………………………………………..... 27 CHAPTER 4: Solutions for the Long-Term Care Crisis in Ontario…………………………... 28 4-1 What is a Seniors Active Living Center?................................................................. 29 4-2 Seniors Active Living Centers Since the COVID-19 Pandemic.………………..... 29 4-3 Benefits and Advantages of Senior Active Living Centers……………………….. 32 vii 4-4 Media and Technology in Spreading Awareness…………………………………. 35 4-5 Other Suggestions to Gradually Diminish the Long-term Care Crisis……………. 36 4-6 Chapter Summary…………………………………………………………………. 37 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION………………………………………………………………... 38 REFERENCES………………………………………………………………………………... 41 VITA AUCTORIS:……………………………………………………………………………. 48 viii LIST OF TABLES TABLE 1: Overview of Stream 1 and Stream 2 Grants, SCG Program, 2019-2020.………… 24 TABLE 2: Social Programs Calender for Members at SALC in Anrprior Regional Health … 31 ix LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE 1: The expected percentage of Senior Population in Ontario by 2041……………… 12 FIGURE 2: Total number of reported cases in Ontario’s long-term care homes with confirmed COVID-19 outbreaks…………………………………………………………….. 20 x LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ABBREVIATION 1: SALC: Seniors Active Living Center ……………………………………… ABBREVIATION 2: LTC: Long-Term Care……………………………………………………… ABBREVIATION 3: CARP: Canadian Association for Retired Persons ………………………… ABBREVIATION 4: MSAA: Ministry for Seniors and Accessibility…………………………….. ABBREVIATION 5: SCG: Seniors Community Grant …………………………………………..

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