Leading the Way for Aging Francophones

Imagine if you or a member of your family were a Francophone senior and required access to specialized services or long-term care in French in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Such services could presently be only available at 37 beds in the Pavillon Omer Deslauriers section of the Bendale Acres home located in Scarborough, if and when one of these beds would become available. Failing that, you would have to move to Ottawa, Welland, Penetanguishene or Sudbury for long-term care in French, or otherwise agree to live out your days in an English-speaking environment. While culture and language are amongst the health determinants, and French being one of the two Canadian official languages, this situation is disproportionate in the GTA where more than 133,000 Francophones live, according to the data from the Statistics Canada 2006 Census.

The Hélène Tremblay Lavoie Foundation is leading the way to ensure that Francophone seniors have access to specialized long-term care services in French in the Greater Toronto Area. Since the creation of the Foundation in 2010, the greatest progress has been the establishment since June 2013 of a priority waiting list for Francophones applying for admission at Pavillon Omer Deslauriers. This achievement can be attributed to the determination and collaboration of the Foundation with the organizations: Bendale Acres, Entité 4, Central East CCAC and Central East LHIN. Many other French community groups and associations have also made a significant contribution to support this development and we are greatly thankful to all of them. The Foundation wishes to expand this experience to some other long-term homes across the GTA and we urgently need your help to champion the rights of those in need and their families.