Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

Roundtable: Aging in Place within a Social Determinants of Health Framework through Integrated Health and Social Care

(Management of Health Organizations)

Statistics show that older adults represent more than half of all hospital days in Canada.  Canada’s society is aging, and this has created a sense of urgency to seek new approaches to provide a more holistic care experience for this patient group in order to enable them to stay longer in their home, this includes faster transitions out of hospitals.  Literature shows that integrated health and social care (IHSC) enables clients to age in the community and reduces inappropriate acute care use.  Under the theme of aging in place, the roundtable will present a diverse set of speakers who will showcase different IHSC initiatives that are all aimed at keeping older adults in the community.  A multiple case study of three IHSC models in Ontario, Alberta and Nova Scotia will be presented to identify the common factors and conditions that support integration among different community-based healthcare and social services organizations. A presentation by CHATs, a community support services agency in Ontario, with their hospital partners, will discuss how they have evolved their IHSC efforts over time as a result of changing provincial healthcare policy agendas.  An overview will be provided of the Home At Last program, and Southlake@Home and Mackenzie Helps, two Ontario Health Team initiatives that support patient transitions out of hospitals back into the home setting, and that reduce avoidable hospital re-admissions. These examples illustrate the importance of ensuring that a healthcare and social care lens are represented in integration efforts to achieve whole person care.