Spectrum Health Care and Seniors for Seniors provide trusted home care and companionship services to support the well-being of elderly Canadians.
Staying active, empowered, and safe are vital elements to aging well. But age-related challenges can make it difficult for seniors to live on their own, especially when family caregivers are not available. Having extra help can make a world of difference to their independence and well-being. Spectrum Health Care and its Seniors for Seniors division provides home care and companionship services to help seniors remain in their homes. Established in 1977, Spectrum Health Care serves a large geographical territory across Ontario.
Spectrum’s Total Care philosophy supports independence, quality of life, and wellness throughout all stages of life and its medical and non-medical services reflect this. “Whether it’s something simple like a companion or cleaning services or something more complex where they need more care, we have a complement of resources to take care of people at whatever stage they’re at,” says Randy Meisner, Head of Market Development and Growth at Spectrum Health Care.
Keeping seniors socially connected through companion services
Senior companionship services, delivered through Seniors for Seniors, are an important part of the Total Care model. “According to Statistics Canada, approximately 30 percent of Canadian seniors are at risk of being socially isolated,” says Kristina Dobbin, Director, Seniors for Seniors. “This lack of social connection can lead to poor health and feelings of loneliness and emotional distress,” says Dobbin.
Seniors for Seniors aims to solve this problem by providing seniors with support and companionship services from mature adults. “We find mature companions tend to have more in common with the senior client through similar life
experiences and that helps to create meaningful connection and relationships between our clients and companions,” says Dobbin.
…we have a complement of resources to take care of people at whatever stage they’re at.
During the intake and assessment, clients’ medical and non-medical needs are reviewed and discussed, as well as their hobbies and interests to ensure a good match. “It’s really important for us not to just fill the shift but make it the right fit,” says Dobbin. For their part, companions are required to be compassionate, caring, friendly, and dedicated to helping seniors age in place.
Strong bonds form between clients and companions
Some Seniors for Seniors clients have found interesting and novel ways to use the service. “One of our clients is a golf lover and during the summer he hires a companion to go golfing with him because his family can’t take him,” says Dobbin. Another client who lives in a retirement home in the Ottawa Valley uses a driver companion to sojourn through the old areas of town where she grew up. “It’s the same two individuals who visit for two hours a week and they both look forward to it. The client gets to take a drive down memory lane, visit familiar areas, share stories from her past, and talk about what music she listened to growing up. The conversations between them just flow naturally like friends,” says Meisner.
In fact, many companions and clients form close bonds and friendships. “Over time, we find that many of our companions or caregivers get invited to family events,” says Dobbin.
Spectrum’s Seniors for Seniors division provides elderly clients with companionship, personal care, driving assistance, home cleaning services and live-in, overnight and respite care. To complete Spectrum’s total care offering, we also offer a wide array of medical services including nursing, personal support workers, and foot care.
