Help for Family Caregivers is Now Available
Online
(March
19, 2002) –- For hundreds of thousands of Ontarians looking after
aging parents and other loved ones at home, feelings of isolation and
helplessness can be overwhelming. Yet there are few places for them to turn for
answers or assistance.
These
family caregivers, about two-thirds of whom are women, spend an average of 28
hours a week looking after a loved one. Typically, they are in their mid-forties
and are trying to juggle caregiving responsibilities with other demands such as
children and jobs. A
big part of the problem is that they feel alone with nowhere to go for
information.
In
response, the Ontario Association of Non-Profit Homes and Services for Seniors
(OANHSS) is launching an online resource centre to help family caregivers. The
first of its kind in Ontario, the service is being funded entirely by OANHSS. It
can be accessed at www.oanhss.org and is free to everyone.
The
resource centre provides consumers with current information about not-for-profit
homes, housing and services for seniors available in their community. It
explains how to access care, and it answers their most frequently asked
questions.
Nationally,
it is estimated that there are some three million family caregivers. "And
with the aging population, we expect this number to increase significantly in
the future. There is no question that this online resource will help meet a
growing need," says Donna Rubin, CEO of OANHSS.
The
OANHSS online resource centre is being supported by a series of public service
announcements (PSAs) developed for newspapers, magazines, radio, television and
cable. The PSAs are now being distributed to the media in every community in
Ontario.
"As
a charitable organization, we are asking the media to help bring this resource
to the attention of the public," says Rubin.
OANHSS
is the provincial association representing not-for-profit providers of long term
care, services and housing for seniors. Its member facilities operate over
25,000 long term care beds and more than 5,000 seniors' housing units in
Ontario.
OANHSS On-line Resource for Seniors
List of OANHSS members by region
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Ontario Association of Non-Profit Homes & Services for Seniors
7050 Weston Road, Suite 700, Woodbridge, Ontario L4L 8G7
(P) 905-851-8821
(F) 905-851-0744
Comments or questions about our site?
Contact
Debbie Humphreys
at 905-851-8821 ext. 233
Media Enquiries
© Copyright 2008 OANHSS
OANHSS members include not-for-profit providers of long term care, services and
housing for seniors in Ontario.
Members include municipal and charitable long term care homes, non-profit
nursing homes,
seniors' housing projects and community
service agencies.