Ontario Making Long-Term Care Investments in Lambton-Kent-Middlesex
Supports will help residents connect to care and avoid unnecessary hospital admissions.
NEWS
June 19, 2024
Middlesex/Lambton/Chatham-Kent – The Ontario government is investing in local long-term care homes in Lambton-Kent-Middlesex, to help connect residents with complex needs like dementia and bariatric care to the right care in the right place, while also reducing avoidable emergency department visits and hospital stays.
“I am proud of these investments from the Ontario Government under the leadership of Doug Ford. Ensuring that residents in long-term care homes receive the right care at the right time is crucial. This approach not only enhances their quality of life but also helps prevent unnecessary hospital visits, allowing our healthcare system to focus on urgent and emergent issues. It is vital for providing the best possible outcomes for our most vulnerable citizens.” Steve Pinsonneault, MPP for Lambton-Kent-Middlesex
As part of the funding, 4 homes in Lambton-Kent-Middlesex are receiving $143,908.
| Country Terrace | Komoka | $5,270 |
| Fairfield Park | Wallaceburg | $20,621 |
| North Lambton Lodge | Forest | $10,400 |
| Sprucedale Care Centre | Strathroy | $107,617 |
The funding will help long-term care homes purchase items such as IV equipment, bariatrics equipment, bed support, bladder scanners, and ECGs. The funding even goes towards important everyday things like slip-proof floor mats, wrap around bed rails, and grab bars.
“Our government is continuing to take action to ensure long-term care residents across Ontario get the right care in the right place,” said Natalia Kusendova-Bashta, Minister of Long-Term Care. “This funding will expand specialized staffing, equipment and other services at homes across the province so long-term care residents with complex needs can connect to the care they need, when and where they need it.”
Launched in 2022, the Local Priorities Fund invested $20 million in 2022-23 to help long-term care homes purchase specialized equipment and train staff to provide more specialized care, so more homes can welcome residents who have complex needs but no longer require acute care in hospital. The fund also helped current residents who have new, or increasingly complex medical or specialized equipment needs which could not be previously accommodated in their long-term care home, helping to avoid unnecessary hospital admissions.
“Through the Local Priorities Fund, our government is continuing to ensure that Ontarians, at every stage of life, have access to the care and support they need, when they need it,” said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “This investment builds on the historic work our government is doing to provide people with the right care, in settings most convenient to them, whether in their community or in their home.”
The Local Priorities Fund is part of a broader investment of over $120 million in 2022-23 and complements the recently launched Equipment and Training Fund, which helps long-term care homes purchase more diagnostic equipment and train staff to better manage and treat residents’ conditions that often lead to preventable hospital visits, such as urinary tract infections, falls, pneumonia and congestive heart failure.
QUICK FACTS
- Through a $6.4 billion investment, the government is building more than 30,000 net new long-term care beds in Ontario by 2028 and upgrading more than 28,000 older beds to modern design standards.
- The Ontario government is providing up to $1.8 billion this year to long-term care homes to hire and retain thousands more long-term care staff. This is part of the government’s historic four-year commitment of up to $4.9 billion to increase the provincewide average direct care time provided to residents to four hours per day by March 31, 2025.
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