Presenters: Jennifer Bethell, PhD, Epidemiologist and Health Services Researcher, Co-lead of the Engagement of People with Lived Experience of Dementia, Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration and Aging; and Katelynn Viau Aelick, MSc., Project Coordinator, Behavioural Supports Ontario Provincial Coordinating Office.
Summary: We will present the findings from a knowledge exchange project conducted by researchers at The KITE Research Institute (University Health Network) together with Behavioural Supports Ontario (BSO), Family Councils Ontario (FCO) and the Ontario Association of Resident's Councils (OARC). Together, we conducted a scoping review of published research that reported some aspect(s) of social connection among residents of long-term care (LTC) homes.
In this presentation, we will summarize the research evidence linking social connection to mental health outcomes for LTC residents as well as twelve strategies that might help to build and maintain social connection for LTC residents - both during COVID-19 and beyond.
