Photo caption: Greg Laforge attends a painting workshop co-ordinated by North Simcoe Muskoka Specialized Geriatric Services as part of its Care Partner Respite Program.
By: Travis Mealing, Communications Officer, Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care
With health care resources stretched across the province, North Simcoe Muskoka Specialized Geriatric Services (NSM SGS), in partnership with the Alzheimer’s Society of Simcoe County and Muskoka, is redefining respite for care partners and older adults. At the core of this transformation is a refreshingly simple idea: give care partners and their loved ones the chance to connect meaningfully outside the traditional health care system.
Launched with seed funding from Ontario Health Central Region, NSM SGS — with Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care as its lead agency — has developed with the Alzheimer’s Society a Care Partner Respite Program that’s as innovative as it is intuitive. By engaging local community organizations, the program offers accessible and enriching activities for older adults, while giving caregivers a chance to recharge and build connections of their own.
“They want to be able to do things that are enjoyable with each other that don’t cause a ton of stress,” said Jenna Davis, Manager of NSM SGS’s Geriatric Mental Health Community team. “We’re offering opportunities for fun and recreation outside of the home, but in an environment that will set them up for success so they can mutually benefit.”
In many conventional respite models, a health care worker might come into the home to provide supervision, allowing the caregiver to step away for a few hours. The NSM SGS program flips this idea. Instead of staying home, care partners and their loved ones attend programs together in welcoming, low-stimulus environments tailored to older adults living with frailty and complexity, including dementia.
For those immersed in the daily demands of caregiving, these experiences offer respite, dignity and even small victories.
“There’s a bit of joy in the fact that the person who can struggle with daily activities can create a piece of art,” said Valerie Powell, co-chair of Age-Friendly Orillia and caregiver to her husband, who suffered a stroke 11 years ago.
Powell recently attended a MacLaren Art Centre watercolour workshop in Orillia, which she described as extremely well designed for participants with any level of artistic ability: “The instructors lead you through the whole process with the watercolours and the hues, how to mix the paint, how to apply it, and everybody’s piece looked great.”
Also at the workshop were Monique Laforge and her husband, Greg, whose physical and mental health have been in decline for years due to a dementia-like condition. Greg told his wife it was a fun experience and a very pleasant atmosphere.
“We feel it is important to have programs like these to keep people living with dementia engaged in the community,” said Monique.
In addition to the MacLaren, NSM SGS has partnered with such community organizations as the Wye Marsh Wildlife Centre, the Simcoe County Museum and Bradford Greenhouses. Each has adapted its programming to include smaller groups, sensory-friendly environments and flexible instruction.
“Most of these organizations have people with some lived experience being a caregiver themselves, so they’re exploring how they can get this programming to be sustainable,” said Georgina Megens, Recreation Therapist with NSM SGS.
Importantly, the program also helps chip away at the stigma that can accompany cognitive conditions like Alzheimer’s or dementia. By removing the clinical setting, it fosters a sense of normalcy and shared experience.
“They know it’s OK if their loved one gets up and wants to go explore something or engage in some resources over on the other side of the room,” said Megens. “It’s not going to be disruptive to the group because everybody is on the same page of supporting their loved one in a safe environment.”
While the activities happen, caregiving spouses or partners can step aside — not to leave, but to connect with one another. In these moments, friendships are formed over shared cups of tea, laughter and understanding.
NSM SGS’s Care Partner Respite Program aligns with Ontario’s home-first and age-in-place strategies by offering an alternative to traditional models — especially for those hesitant to engage with adult day programs or 55-plus centres.
“It’s normalizing the experience,” said Megens. “It’s creating a space that’s just a normal group coming together and building that relationship with care partners so that they can meet each other, socialize, and build their networks.”
Powell is optimistic more community partners will step forward to offer programming and, as interest grows, the NSM SGS model will become a blueprint for other regions: “I’m hopeful that every community has organizations that will take on the responsibility of this type of programming.”