There’s No Place Like Home: Why Canada Must Prioritize Small Care Home Models in its Provision of Long-Term Care

The National Institute on Ageing (NIA) launched its latest report calling for the urgent prioritization of small care home models in the future delivery of long-term care (LTC) services across Canada.

This report, There’s No Place Like Home, emphasizes the need for a transformative shift away from delivering care in large institutional care settings to smaller, more personalized, home-like environments that align with public preferences and improve care outcomes for residents and working conditions for staff.

Canada’s LTC systems are currently grappling with multiple challenges, including chronic underfunding, staffing shortages, and the continued reliance on large institutional models that fail to meet the diverse needs of our ageing population. The COVID-19 pandemic has further exposed the vulnerabilities in these systems, revealing the detrimental impact of crowded living conditions and insufficient resources on both residents and staff. Furthermore, access to LTC services is not guaranteed under Canada’s universal health care systems, leading to significant disparities in access and quality across provinces.