The following list of events and activities sponsored by Care Renewal projects and partners reflects the partners' desire to share new knowledge about caregiver respite and to help change policy and practice.
This page will be updated to include new activities, so please check back often.
Care Renewal AGM Summary
February 5-6, 2007 Montreal, Quebec
The Care Renewal Annual Meeting held February 5-6, 2007 in Montreal, Quebec brought together the 12 projects from Phase I and Phase II of the Care Renewal Project. The vast amount of knowledge generated through the Care Renewal Projects will continue fostering capacity and innovation to embed the reality of “respite as outcome” within caregiver support programs and public policy to effect social change, which will directly benefit caregivers.
Click here for Meeting Notes.
Care Renewal FICCDAT Summary
June 16-19, 2007 Toronto, Ontario
The Festival of International Conferences on Caregiving, Disability, Ageing and Technology (FICCDAT), took place June 16-19, 2007 in Toronto, Ontario (www.ficcdat.ca). FICCDAT united rehabilitation, social and health services providers, government policy makers, researchers, family caregivers, students, seniors and persons with disabilities from around the world to enhance the lives of seniors, persons with disabilities and their family caregivers.
Several Care Renewal Project members were featured in presentations and plenary sessions at the FICCDAT - Caregivers: Partners in Care Conference.
Poster Presentations included:
- Brenda Higham, Alberta Caregivers Association Certified Caregiver Advisor
- Barb McLean, Family Caregiver Network Society Reaching out to Family Caregivers
- Jon Temme, MS Society of Canada MS Society of Canada Caregiver Initiatives
- Bonnie Schroeder, VON Canada Caregiving as a Strategic Priority: VON's Experience Supporting Caregivers
- Erin Holland, Seniors Resource Centre of Newfoundland and Labrador How We Grew: Regional Caregiver Networks in Newfoundland and Labrador
Plenary Sessions included:
- Erin Holland, Seniors Resource Centre of Newfoundland and Labrador Reaching Rural Caregivers in Newfoundland and Labrador
- Bonnie Schroeder, VON Canada, Intermediary for the Care Renewal Project Creating Respite With Caregivers: A Canadian Story of Care Renewal
- Fiona Haysom, Caregivers Nova Scotia Around the Kitchen Table: Origins of the Caregivers Nova Scotia
- Ulrike Komaksiutiksak, Mary MacLellan, Bonnie Schroeder, Care Renewal Projects Respite in Rural Communities: A Canadian Perspective
- Mark Stolow, CSSS Cavendish Care-ring Where it Counts
Canadian Caregiver Coalition
Becoming Partners: Tools for Transition Symposium
November 16–17, 2005, Ottawa, ON
Representatives from the Care Renewal projects shared what they had learned about respite at this one-day national symposium funded by the Primary Health Care Transition Fund, Max Bell Foundation, and The J.W. McConnell Family Foundation (via the Care Renewal initiative). This event allowed national health organizations, caregiving associations, and service providers (family physicians, nurses, social workers, etc.) to explore how caregivers can be included in interdisciplinary care teams in both policy and practice.
National Conference on Caregiving, Social Development Canada
October 17–18, 2005, Gatineau, QC
Care Renewal team members attended this groundbreaking event. The agenda focused on identifying the key elements that needed to be part of a caregiver policy for Canada. A report is available at www.sdc.gc.ca/en/cs/comm/sd/caregivers.shtml
Public Engagement on Unpaid Caregiving, Social Development Canada
January–June, 2005
Care Renewal team members attended roundtable consultations across the country. They also encouraged caregivers and other stakeholders to be part of the on-line version of the consultations.
Respite Policy Consultation Day
February 18, 2005, Ottawa, ON
Health Canada hired VON Canada to coordinate a respite policy consultation day. As a foundation for the day's activities, a consultant wrote a report summarizing the knowledge that had come from VON Canada's caregiver respite work, including the collective outcomes and experience of the Phase I and Phase II Care Renewal programs. Participants reviewed the report before attending the consultation. When the group gathered, they focused on a draft policy tool that policymakers and others could use in analyzing respite policies within organizations and governments. Federal and provincial policymakers, researchers and community partners discussed the draft policy tool with Care Renewal team members. A new respite policy analysis tool was created from the consultation. Contact caregiving@von.ca for more information.
Caregiving Consultation, Canadian Policy Research Networks (CPRN)
September 26, 2005
Care Renewal team members participated in this consultation to share knowledge that has emerged from the experiences and outcomes of the Care Renewal initiatives. Visit www.cprn.org for more information.
Hidden Costs, Invisible Contributions Research Symposium
June 7–8, 2005, Peterborough, ON
Care Renewal team members presented a synthesis of the respite knowledge that was being built, based on the outcomes and experiences of the Care Renewal initiatives. Visit www.hecol.ualberta.ca/HCIC/ for more information.
Respite Awareness-Raising Day
October 26, 2003, Ottawa, ON
Representatives from The McConnell Foundation, VON Canada, and all projects funded under Phase 1 of the Care Renewal program met with policymakers from various federal departments, as well as Members of Parliament and senators. The reasons for meeting were: 1) to share key messages from the outcomes of the respite projects, and 2) to encourage policymakers and politicians to champion caregiving issues and the development of a comprehensive caregiving strategy. Such a strategy would ensure that caregivers have access to supports and services that respond to changing needs throughout their caregiving journey. Policy officials and politicians, along with stakeholders from the voluntary sector, were also invited to a book launch of This Day is For Me.
Click here to view the tools and materials developed to support the awareness-raising day and other knowledge exchange activities:
- A Call to Action — Doing the Right Thing for Caregivers
- The J.W. McConnell Family Foundation's Supporting Family Caregivers Program Phase 1 National Evaluation Final Report
- This Day is For Me by Silver Donald Cameron
Funding support for the Canadian Caregiver Coalition
June 2003–December 2005
As part of the Care Renewal program, The J.W. McConnell Family Foundation provided financial support for the Canadian Caregiver Coalition. The Coalition is a national voluntary sector organization currently working towards a framework for a nationwide caregiving strategy. The voices and experiences of caregivers who are part of the Care Renewal projects pointed to the need for a comprehensive caregiver policy and strategy. Visit www.ccc-ccan.ca for more information on the Coalition's work.
Other Activities
In addition to these activities, Care Renewal team members have also presented findings at provincial, national and international health care and social services professional conferences.
For more information on these activities, please contact
respite@carerenewal-secondsouffle.ca