To address the many factors impacting caregivers and care providers in Canada, the Canadian Caregiving Summit is organized into four tracks that will explore the most prominent issues experienced in our care economy:
- Healthcare
- Care workforce
- Social and community care
- Work, education, and care
The Canadian Caregiving Summit will explore these topics through the lens of both caregivers and care providers, including experiences of and barriers faced by those in LGBTQ+, Indigenous and racialized communities.
Healthcare
Caregivers face many barriers when supporting a care recipient in healthcare settings or accessing services intended to support them. What’s more, they are rarely recognized as partners in care.
Caregivers, researchers, and leaders in the field will discuss barriers to access services, gaps in services and support for caregivers, and the differences experienced in various care settings. Each topic will also be explored through the lens of personal experience, including the experiences of caregivers in the LGBTQ+, Indigenous and other equity-seeking groups. We will also hear about best practices and alternative models of care from countries around the world.
Themes:
Health systems, gaps in care, caregiver assessments, long-term care, community healthcare delivery, profit and non-profit care, health workforce training, models and best practices, family health teams, research and research directions, transitions in care, aging, illness and disabilities, intersectionality and access.
Care workforce
Care providers support care recipients to age well and participate in their communities. Despite the importance of their role, the sector has been faced with workforce shortages, most recently exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. It is becoming increasingly difficult to find community support for people who need it, which increases the responsibility to caregivers.
The care workforce track will explore the systemic and foundational issues impacting this essential workforce, including its link to immigration and lack of labour laws, pay equity, working conditions and the need for national standards in the workforce.
Themes:
Recruitment, retention, immigration, gender, pay equity, training, micro-credentials, labour and labour law, working conditions, care economy, racism in the workplace, gender discrimination, on-reserve models of caregiving.
Social and community care
Access to social and community care services, such as respite, influences the experiences of caregivers; however, it can be challenging to access based on eligibility criteria or availability of qualified professionals.
This track will dive into the importance of social and community care as a part of the greater care economy, focusing on how factors like system navigation, transitions in care, accessibility and eligibility, and income supports influence on the experience of caregivers.
Themes:
Social prescription, respite, service eligibility, role of local government, housing, child welfare, siblings, tax credits/income supports, loneliness and isolation, LGBTQ+ access issues, culturally safe care, Indigenous models of care.
Work, education, and care
Millions of caregivers balance their care responsibilities with the demands of school or work. Many caregivers, particularly women, may even take time away from work or leave their career entirely to provide care.
Caregiver-friendly policies in work and education institutions could help alleviate the stress that impacts caregivers who juggle care/work/school. Models of this exist in other countries around the world. The work, education and care track will explore the impacts of care on the economy and long-term financial well-being of caregivers.
Themes:
Caregiver-friendly workplaces/academic institutions, young carers and early career development, employment laws/benefits, employment leaves, workplace benefits, pension.
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