Aging with Disabilities in Canada

Policy Dreams and Practical Realities The Canadian Centre on Disability Studies (CCDS) carried out the project “Development of a Comprehensive Knowledge-based Framework to Address the Needs of Canadians with Long-Term Disabilities who are Aging,” funded by the Office for Disability Issues, Social Development Canada (SDC), from March 2007 to April 2008. The project came about due to the recognition of the need for actionbased research on aging with long-term disabilities in Canada. CCDS recognized the need to understand the transition as one ages with a disability in terms of policy, programs and practices, and has identified Aging and Disability as a priority area for research and knowledge development at the national and local levels.

CCDS has five initiatives in regards to aging and disability (see the CCDS website, www.disabilitystudies.ca) and is working on a project titled “Persons with Disabilities as Caregivers: Understanding Support Requirements and the Path to Developing Effective Models for Caregiving Assistance” (2008) funded by SDC.

The aging of the Canadian population is a popular topic with policy experts, academics and the media. The Federal report “Canada’s Aging Population” (2002) estimates that by 2026, nearly 20 percent of Canada’s population will be 65+. This has important implications in terms of health care, community planning, community attractions and spending patterns. There is also recognition of a significant contribution of the older generation to our families and social and economic spheres in our communities, as well as our societal responsibility to ensure meaningful participation in the community. Participation includes affordable accessible housing, accessible community design, caregiver relationships, disability supports, leisure opportunities, volunteering opportunities, access to assistive devices, and access to public transportation. However, our study, carried out in Nova Scotia, Manitoba and British Columbia, showed that many older people with disabilities are still socially isolated due to issues with community and housing accessibility, lack of financial resources, lack of transportation and disability supports, inadequate community policies to accommodate their needs, gender-specific issues and negative societal attitudes.

Our study also confirmed that generally within the Canadian health and social services, people with disabilities and older people are constructed as two distinct client groups, even though they share many commonalities. Separate organizations and departments provide services and support to each group. However, in terms of community participation, as well as barriers and facilitators in the environment, many of the needs/gaps are similar.

There is a need to examine more efficient use of community resources with the growth in these populations and how to best address the needs of people whose issues are related to both aging and disability. Study participants recognized that an age-friendly society would also be a disability-friendly society, and indeed a more universally designed society would be better for all. Surprisingly, there has been very little dialogue between the disability and aging sectors, including government departments, non-profit agencies, researchers and consumers themselves.

An Inter-Provincial Forum held in Winnipeg, March 10-11, 2008, culminated the project activities. It brought together nearly 50 representatives from our national and provincial advisory committees; key stakeholders from the aging and disability sectors involved in service provision, research and/or policy development in the areas of home support/caregiving, housing and transportation; consumers with long-term disabilities who are aging; and selected government departments related to seniors and people with disabilities.

The participants provided their perspectives on the state of related services and policies in their province and on the analysis of the findings from the provincial roundtables. They also contributed to the development of an action framework on persons aging with long-term disabilities in Canada. Invited speakers included Chris Stark, Canadian Transportation Agency; Jim Zamprelli, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation; Elaine Gallagher, Age-Friendly Communities Initiative, Centre on Aging, Victoria, B.C.; Moira Jones, MJones Consulting; James Hunsberger, CCDS Board; Harry Paine, Manitoba Society of Seniors; and Darcy McPherson, CCDS Board Chair.

The resulting action framework supports universal design, active community living, aging-in-place, full participation and contribution, and is based on partnerships between community organizations, service providers, researchers and government departments. This framework is an analytical and action-oriented inclusive policy and program development tool, as it is linked to some major Canadian policies and initiatives, such as the national and provincial frameworks on aging, and age-friendly communities’ initiatives, and based on lessons learned from the disability and seniors’ sectors.

CCDS thanks our funder, partners, Provincial and National Advisory Committees, roundtable participants, and Forum participants for their contributions.

For more information, visit www.agingwithdisabilities. com or contact CCDS, 56 The Promenade, Winnipeg, MB, R3B 3H9, 204-287-8411, fax: 204-284-5343, TTY: 204-475-6223, email: ccds@disabilitystudies.ca.