Growing seniors population taxes homecare services in northeastern Ontario

Morning North4:54Aging population presenting challenges for CCAC

The aging population is needing more care than ever, especially at home. The Community Care Access Centre is finding new ways to serve while staying on budget. The CBC's Kate Rutherford spoke about this issue with the CEO for the CCAC, Richard Joly.The Northeast Community Care Access Centre says it's feeling the demand of seniors needing more complex home care.

The agency serves 16,000 patients in the region, and more than half of them are elderly.

CCAC CEO Richard Joly said hospitals aren't keeping the elderly as long as they used to — and that means they're going home and needing more complicated support.

"[The] complexity has dramatically increased," he said.

"I would say, in the 30-40 per cent range, that we service more complex patients in the community."

But while demand for services is up, the CCAC's budget is staying the same.

"A lot of the time, financial resources don't allow" for the full range of care that more than 8,000 seniors at home, and in the community, Joly noted.

The agency is trying to find ways to be more efficient, he said.

Meanwhile, the CCAC continues to reach out to the community to educate people on the kind of services they offer.

At a recent CCAC information fair held at the Steelworkers Hall in Sudbury, people like Theresa Delacourt took time to familiarize herself with the agency's services.

He mother "is 88-years-old, so you never know when things happen quickly and [she'll] need assistance," she said.