Elder Care: Understanding Caregiver Stress & Burnout

Date: Thursday, November 24, 2022
Time: 12:00 – 1:30 pm
Location: The webinar link will be shared with you via email prior to the session start time.

In the presentation, you will learn about:
• the landscape of caregiving in Ontario.
• the difference between stress and burnout and common signs and symptoms of each.
• strategies to support you as a caregiver in identifying when you are feeling stressed or burned out.
• resources to support you at any step of your caregiving experience
• a brief overview of the resources and services you can receive from the Ontario Caregiver Organization

Facilitator: Shrid Dhungel works with The Ontario Caregiver Organization as the Regional Lead for Community Engagement, for the Central Ontario region, including the GTA. He has over 7 years’ experience in Canada in stakeholder and community engagement and in co-design work. He holds a Master in Public Health degree and has worked in global health initiatives in developing countries as well, all prior to him immigrating to Canada.

Registration required. Current University of Toronto students, staff, faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and their partners are welcome. If you have any access needs to ensure your full participation in this event, please contact the Family Care Office and we will try our best to work with you and make appropriate arrangements.

Elder Care: Understanding the System

Date: Monday, October 17, 2022
Time: 12:00 – 1:30 pm
Location: The webinar link will be shared with you via email prior to the session start time.

Trying to find the government, community and private resources to assist you to care for your aging relative in the home can be overwhelming. Who do you start with and what is available?

In this session, Zoe Levitt, M.S.W., R.S.W will guide you through:
• The types of services and resources that are available for your elder relatives who are still living in their own homes
• Finding and selecting available home care supports
• How to access these supports and the costs that might be involved
• Bring your individual questions/concerns and ask the facilitator for her advice

Facilitator: Zoe Levitt is an Elder Care Consultant with a Masters’ Degree in Social Work. She has been working with the elderly in their homes and in hospitals for more than 30 years.

Registration required. University of Toronto students, staff, postdoctoral fellows, faculty, and their partners are welcome. If you have any access needs to ensure your full participation in this event, please contact the Family Care Office and we will try our best to work with you and make appropriate arrangements.

Family Event: Webb’s First Look at the Universe and a Summer Sky Adventure for Kids (FULL)

Date: Friday, September 2nd, 2022
Time: 2:00 P.M. – 3:30 P.M.
Location: AB114, 50 St George St – please enter via the Ursula Franklin doors

Join us as we learn about James Webb Space Telescope images, followed by a guided solar observation through the Astronomy department’s telescopes. Open to U of T students, staff, and faculty with children starting Grade 2 in September up to Grade 9. Accompanied with one adult only please.

Register early, spaces limited! Email family.care@utoronto.ca and include your name, U of T status and grades of your participating children.

Event collaboration by the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics and the Family Care Office.

Elder Care: Understanding the System

Date: Thursday, March 17, 2022
Time: 12:00 – 1:30 pm
Location: The webinar link will be shared with you via email prior to the session start time.

Trying to find the government, community and private resources to assist you to care for your aging relative in the home can be overwhelming. Who do you start with and what is available?

In this session, Zoe Levitt, M.S.W., R.S.W will guide you through:

  • The types of services and resources that are available for your elder relatives who are still living in their own homes
  • Finding and selecting available home care supports
  • How to access these supports and the costs that might be involved
  • Bring your individual questions/concerns and ask the facilitator for her advice

Facilitator: Zoe Levitt is an Elder Care Consultant with a Masters’ Degree in Social Work. She has been working with the elderly in their homes and in hospitals for more than 25 years.

Registration required. University of Toronto students, staff, postdoctoral fellows, faculty, and their partners are welcome. If you have any access needs to ensure your full participation in this event, please contact the Family Care Office and we will try our best to work with you and make appropriate arrangements.

Elder Care: Meaningful Activities (for Care Partners)

Date: Tuesday, February 1, 2022
Time: 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Location: The webinar link will be shared with you via email prior to the session start time.

Learn the importance of meaningful activities for people with dementia or their family members. Demonstrate importance of sensory stimulation for people with dementia. Employ additional strategies and resources for creating meaningful activities for people with dementia.

For care partners or family member of a person living with dementia

Facilitator: Kimberly Panditharatne, Caregiver Education Coordinator with the Alzheimer Society Toronto
Registration required. University of Toronto students, staff, faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and their partners are welcome. If you have any access needs to ensure your full participation in this event, please contact the Family Care Office and we will try our best to work with you and make appropriate arrangements.

Elder Care: Parenting Your Parents

Date: Tuesday, November 16, 2021
Time: 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Location: The webinar link will be shared with you via email prior to the session start time.

As our parents age, we often find ourselves nagging them to stay safe and healthy. When your elders live with you, this presents additional gifts and challenges.

In this session we will explore how roles and expectations may change as caregivers, and how our default stress mechanisms both protect and challenge us. For many of us (especially this facilitator), the more stressed we get, the more controlling we get, and this can become complicated for the people we live with. We will consider strategies for balancing love and responsibility with respecting the autonomy of those we live with, no easy feat in such challenging times.

Facilitator: Rebecca Higgins has worked in community and social services for over 17 years, specializing in mental health education since 2010. Rebecca has been facilitating workshops on behalf of CMHA Toronto since 2015, and has produced and delivered curricula and resources for the CMHA Ottawa Branch and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH).

U of T students, staff, faculty, and their partner/spouse are welcome to attend.

Elder Care – Family Caregiving: A Plan For Action

Date: Thursday, October 14, 2021
Time: 12:00 – 1:30 pm
Location: The webinar link will be shared with you via email prior to the session start time.

Nobody thinks they will become a family caregiver. One day you are a daughter, son or spouse occasionally helping parents or a spouse. Seemingly overnight you become a case manager, disease specialist, chauffeur, researcher, care advocate – all in support of an ageing parent(s)/spouse.

How does it happen? How can you prepare?

This session provides an overview of families and caregiving and provides an action plan to give caregivers more confidence and control. Developing a plan for the care of your loved one is vitally important to your success and longevity. Your plan can serve as a guide as you care for both you and your loved one.

The session will cover:

  • A 10- Step Action Plan
  • Caregiver Challenges Including:
  • Family Members Unwilling To Help
  • Parents/Spouse Unwilling To Accept Help
  • Abuse Of Caregivers
  • I Can’t Be The Primary Caregiver Anymore
  • How To Gain/Keep Control
  • Resources

Facilitator: Karen Henderson,  Founder/CEO Long Term Care Planning Network,  Speaker, Educator, Writer, Consultant

Specialists in helping Canadians and their families understand the implications of long term care and eldercare on financial, personal and family well-being.

Registration required. University of Toronto students, staff, faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and their partners are welcome. If you have any access needs to ensure your full participation in this event, please contact the Family Care Office and we will try our best to work with you and make appropriate arrangements.

Elder Care – Long Term Care Planning: What Is It And Why We Should Care

Date: Thursday, March 25, 2021
Time: 12 noon to 1:15 p.m. (The facilitator will be available for 15 minutes after the 1 hour and 15 minute presentation to answer questions)
Location: The webinar link will be shared with you via email prior to the session start time.

Every year 225,000 Canadians turn 65; approximately 50% of these will need some form of long term care after age 75.* The problem is, however, that too few of us can answer the following care questions: If something were to suddenly happen, who would take care of my loved one? How would I or my loved one pay for that care?  The vast majority of us want to age with dignity and control. But that takes long term care planning, and this planning— which involves more than just money—needs to be a part of every financial and/or retirement plan written today.

This session will include information on:

  • The Care Continuum – Long Term Care Options, Costs, Services
  • The Role of Local Health Integration Networks (LHINs)
  • LTC Facility Admission Process
  • The Role of Governments
  • Long Term Care Funding Options/Government Subsidy
  • For Profit Vs. Not-For-Profit Care Facilities
  • Summary—Your Action Plan
  • Long Term Care And COVID-19

Ample resources will also be provided. After the 1 hour and 15 minute presentation, the facilitator will be available for 15 minutes to answer questions.

*Statistics Canada: Health Expectancy in Canada

Facilitator: Karen Henderson, Founder/CEO of the Long Term Care Planning Network

Registration required. University of Toronto students, staff, faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and their partners are welcome. If you have any access needs to ensure your full participation in this event, please contact the Family Care Office and we will try our best to work with you and make appropriate arrangements.

 

Elder Care: Safety at Home

Date: Wednesday, February 24, 2021
Time: 12:00 – 1:30 pm
Location: The webinar link will be shared with you via email prior to the session start time.

This webinar is for family caregivers of individuals living with dementia.

The webinar will focus on helping care partners identify possible risks and make the necessary modifications at different stages of the disease.

The webinar will be presented using Zoom.

Facilitator: Kimberly Dilmohamed, Caregiver Education Coordinator, Alzheimer Society of Toronto

Registration required. Current University of Toronto students, staff, faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and their partners are welcome.

If you have any access needs to ensure your full participation in this event, please contact the Family Care Office and we will try our best to work with you and make appropriate arrangements.

Elder Care: Understanding the Rights of Family Caregivers for Seniors in LTC Homes

Date: Monday, November 30, 2020
Time: 1:00 – 2:00 pm
Location: The webinar link will be shared with you via email prior to the session start time.

During this pandemic, the rights of caregivers to visit family and friends in long-term care (LTC) have been increasingly unclear.

This webinar will explore the rights of caregivers during COVID19, particularly about visiting loved ones in LTC both when an outbreak is occurring and when it is not. Participants will learn the governing legislation and regulations, how to navigate blockages with LTC administration and what your rights really are.

Facilitator:  Laura Tamblyn Watts, president and CEO of CanAge, Canada’s Seniors Advocacy Organization, is a highly sought after expert regarding matters involving older adults in Canada and around the world. She also teaches at the University of Toronto, where she is also a Fellow of the Institute for Lifecourse and Aging.

Registration required. University of Toronto students, staff, faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and their partners are welcome. If you have any access needs to ensure your full participation in this event, please contact the Family Care Office and we will try our best to work with you and make appropriate arrangements.