Student-Infused Senior Care Navigation and Care Skills Development Program - with Adult Day Centres

Research Area: Health  | Status:  Ongoing | Led By: Clinical Coordinators and is student-infused

Background

As the number of Canadians who are aging and living with a chronic progressive illness increases, so does the need for informal caregivers to provide in-home care. Many informal caregivers (family and friends) and seniors feel unprepared to care for seniors aging at home.

Project Vision

With this program, we hope to enhance the quality of informal care provided to seniors aging at home. Involving health students (as well as secondary students) will also strengthen future healthcare and support of seniors and their families.

The completion of these workshops by informal caregivers will positively impact their skills, abilities, and confidence to navigate senior care at home.

Goals and Expected Outcomes from the research

Informal caregivers (i.e., family and friends) will have increased access to and awareness of this training program and will acquire improved skills and abilities and preparedness for the caregiving role.

Informal caregivers (participants) will experience decreased social isolation and will have access to increased support networks and increased access to services/supports.

Participants will also experience intellectual stimulation due to group learning. Informal caregivers will also have access to respite care while attending these workshops with their senior. 

Students will have an increased awareness of the family caregiver role and improved self-efficacy delivering education to informal caregivers and seniors aging in place.  

Researchers

This project is an example of moving research to practice. We would like to thank our researchers.

NBCC (New Brunswick Community College)
Tammie Black, M.Ed., RRT, FCSRT
Kyle Brymer, BA (Hons) in psychology and PhD in Neuroscience
Sonya Ducey, LPN
Jackie Perry, LPN

University of Manitoba
Jamie L. Penner RN, PhD

University of New Brunswick - Saint John
Catherine Hamilton, CNM, PhD
Kimberly Wilbur RN MN
Derek J. Gaudet, B.A. (hons), M.A.

Partners and Supports

This project is funded through the Healthy Seniors Pilot Project (HSPP) initiative of Social Development, supported by the Public Health Agency of Canada. 

The goal of the applied research initiative was to examine and improve how governments, in partnership with the research community, non-profits, and the private sector, could better support seniors in their homes, communities, and care facilities. Healthy Seniors Pilot Projects will help New Brunswickers to better understand the gendered impacts on an aging population, improve the quality of life for our seniors, and help us lay the groundwork for the dissemination of evidence-based best practices in supporting healthy aging for all Canadians.