ILTCCABC NEWS: Debrief released May 31 2024
ILTCCABC returns from the BCCPA 47th Annual Conference: Come Together. It was a conference full of inspiration and new connections.
We thank all our family councils for their support and volunteerism which has propelled us to ensure all long-term care home operators know who we are and what we do in support of independent resident and family councils in all long-term care homes across BC.
We had a booth at the tradeshow!
When they say “location” is everything to marketing, we were located between the main breakfast and snack bars and booths which had robot and touch screen games, so we were “in the zone”!
Our banner, regional brochures, candy bowl and “enter-to-win” box helped to slow down passersby and engage in conversation with us.
We received over 60 new contacts directly related to our long-term care council work who we look forward to following up with.
The conference opening session included welcome addresses (in person and by video) from: The Honourable Premier David Eby, Premier; The Honorable Adrian Dix, Minister of Health; and Dan Levitt, Office of the Seniors Advocate.
The Keynote: Derek Burleton, VP and Deputy Chief Economist, TD Bank provided a look into economic trends affecting the seniors living, wellness, and care sectors. The takeaway is nothing new and that is, we are playing catch up in this economy to data which long predicted this tsunami of seniors and all their needs and our challenges trying to care for them.
The educational and interactive sessions were on topics we all can relate to. Here are some of the highlights:
The role of technology in enhancing elder care operations was a major theme in session topics and in trade show vendors.
Shaping culture and shifting mindset was also a topic to note as long-term care shifts form a hospital model to a more person-centered approach. There was emphasis on values not being mere slogans but should be deeply ingrained in the organization’s DNA, influencing decision-making at all levels.
There were bright ideas brought forward: Using CIHI interRAI Quality Indicators is one of them. Quality indicators of job-related tasks focus on the outcomes of the task in order to adjust or change process.
We think the session entitled: “I’m Not Going to a Nursing Home!” truly resonated with us. It was about transforming Senior Living to support Active Aging, Community Connection, and Intentional Wellness
Many more interesting topics and conversations were had in small groups and one-on-one discussions. It was a success for us to have learned and connected with so many of our “colleagues” who provides services for those in long-term care and also at home care.
The whole conference was themed to create “mountain memories” with the apres-ski reception revealing the “true north” in everybody from costumes to character impressions. We have learned what “apres-ski attire is now!
Finally, we want to leave you with a word cloud which was compiled using the words we heard most frequently at the conference. We feel this is highly representative of our work supporting the resident and family voice in long-term care. We know that increased engagement the stakeholders leads to better decision making and outcomes for who we serve.