2024-07-31_amanda_JulyContent_MTL_FINAL_31July2024.docx

Article 1

Personalized care a priority as Canadian dementia cases rise

John’s stories tend to meander these days. A conversation that starts about the weather might weave its way into a vivid description of catching a ride to the local pub in a convertible the night before. The details are a little foggy, and the line between reality and fiction is increasingly blurred.

“I just try to meet him wherever he is in that moment,” says John’s son, Alexander. “I try to be patient, and engage with him however I can. He usually changes the subject after awhile, and comes back closer to where we really stand today.”

At 82, John’s living with some form of dementia — a diagnosis his family is working to solidify. Progressing through a network of referrals, cognitive tests and waiting lists: it’s not a straightforward process. That said, it’s more common than many of us think. John and his family certainly aren’t alone.

Dementia rates rising in Canada, and Montreal is no exception

More than 1 million Canadians will be living with dementia by 2030. That’s a big number — one expected to increase significantly in the years ahead. By 2050, the Alzheimer Society of Canada projects a 187% uptick in the number of people living with dementia. With so many different forms of dementia (Alzheimer’s disease being the most common), it’s fair to say: people will experience the condition in different ways.

Here in Quebec, more than 125,000 people live with Alzheimer’s disease or a related form of dementia. That includes 33,000 in Montreal alone.

“We certainly feel the impacts of that growing Alzheimer’s and dementia population among our clients in Montreal,” says Joey Taylor, General Manager of home care assistance provider, TheKey Montreal. “We recognize that every client is unique, and we tailor our caregiving approach to their specific needs and cognitive capacity. I think that’s what really makes the difference, not only for our clients’ quality of life, but for the family’s wellbeing, too.”

For Taylor, success means starting client relationships with a deep understanding and assessment of the individual, the right caregiver fit and a reliance on TheKey’s Cognitive Therapeutic MethodTM. “Our caregivers follow this method to provide holistic care for clients with Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia. We focus on the right interventions for each individual, whether we’re proactively flexing those muscles to support cognitive function or supporting someone who already lives with dementia.”

Personalized, in-home dementia care across the greater Montreal area

Designed by experts to boost brain health for people at any level of cognitive function, the Cognitive Therapeutic Method touches on all five aspects of cognition:

Memory (retaining information to use later on)

Visual-spatial perception (accurately perceiving an objective person’s location and understanding the relationship between objects)

Executive functioning (reasoning, problem solving, judgement and thought flexibility)

Attention (focusing on a specific piece of information for a long period of time, even in the face of competing distractions)

Language (executing verbal functions, including spontaneous speech, speech repetition and comprehension, naming, reading and writing)

From prompts that move the client to answer questions about a picture they’ve just seen to lacing cards that help clients form patterns: individual activities are mixed and matched so folks can exercise their minds and, above all? Have some fun.

“Caregiving isn’t just about providing the necessities of life,” Taylor says. “It’s also about quality of life. By incorporating these kinds of activities as part of in-home care, we offer clients a chance to work on cognitive function in ways that feel enjoyable and engaging. That’s our priority.”

That’s true for John’s family, too. Alexander and his siblings are keen to provide a more well-rounded life experience for their dad, even as his dementia progresses. “Having a caregiver that we know is going to engage with him when we’re not there, and bring a little more happiness into his days? For us, that can make a huge and positive difference.”

Article 2

Balanced care fundamental to longevity in Montreal and beyond

Every time the women slip their kayaks into the Lake of Two Mountains, someone invariably shouts “Blue zone!”.

It’s a throw back to a documentary these middle-age moms binge-watched last fall. Sparked by a National Geographic explorer’s journalistic quest to understand why people in Okinawa, Japan — and other so-called blue zones — live longer and healthier than any other place on earth, these woman are taking the theory’s grounding principles to heart.

“What they found is that people in Okinawa and other spots have more seniors living to be 100 than typical towns and cities do,” explains Frankie. “And there are some core traits or characteristics of the way people live in these areas that fuel longevity. We’re looking ahead at the second half of our lives and saying: we want that, too.”

These friends actively embrace the lifestyle factors highlighted at the core of the research. With their own spin on healthy diets, physical activity (whether kayaking or tackling twice-weekly work-out classes together) and sharp minds (think book clubs that offer social connections and meaningful conversations), the women — aged 42 to 55 — are creating their version of a blue zone in a lakeside neighbourhood, just 20 minutes off the Western tip of Montreal.

This ad-hoc approach is laying the groundwork for what each hopes will be a flourishing path towards the golden years. It’s the very same theory that formed the basis of TheKey’s Balanced Care MethodTM  more than 20 years ago.

A balanced approach to providing Montreal seniors with personalized, at-home care

As a leading in-home, senior and elder care provider in Montreal, TheKey’s team built its reputation by adopting a proprietary, holistic strategy for living and aging well at home. First and foremost, the Balanced Care Method is centred around moderation and variety.

“These two elements ground our philosophy,” says Timothy Thomas, Head of Canada Division, TheKey. “Many of the families we meet across the Montreal area don’t realize how transactional caregiving can be. Our caregivers are trained to go beyond simply delivering medications or helping with hygiene. They engage with every client and find appropriate activities that allow people to feel seen and have fun over the course of their day.”

Whether making trips to a local garden centre, so a client can get close to the plants and flowers they once loved to work with, or playing a round of cards in the comfort of home: TheKey’s caregiving teams help clients stay active, pursue interests, eat healthy, enjoy companionship and find a sense of purpose.

That last element is particularly important. Studies suggest that a higher sense of purpose in life is associated with a lower risk of early death. In Canada, more than eight in 10 people who report high life satisfaction also reported a strong sense of meaning. At nearly 70%, Quebec has the most people reporting a strong sense of meaning and purpose.

Thomas is buoyed by those numbers, and happy TheKey’s caregiving teams can support that trend among Montreal seniors. “The research has long shown that in Okinawa and beyond, these factors really help people live not only longer, but well. Through continuous training programs and our Balanced Care Method, we make sure our caregivers are ready to deliver on that for our clients.”

Article 3

Take in-home caregiving from good 
to great

A little conversation can go a very long way. Where senior care is concerned, that’s true for many seemingly small things that we tend to take for granted at earlier life stages.

A short walk around the block. Fresh air in the backyard. A round of cards at the kitchen table or an afternoon decorating for the holidays. Each of these moments can empower seniors with a sense of purpose, engage cognitive functions and bring a little bit of happy variety to the day.

It’s those elements that set home and senior care apart. At TheKey Montreal, we incorporate these aspects into everyday caregiving — helping the clients we care for live long and fulfilling lives at home. What does that look like from day to day? At TheKey Montreal, we:

Hire only one in 25 applicants. We know it takes a special kind of person to provide gold-standard care at home. “We work hard to get a sense of individuals before we hire,” explains Timothy Thomas, Head of Canada Division, TheKey. “What’s just as important, though, is determining the right caregiver fit. Once we hire someone, we invest a lot of thought into pairing them with the right client. We consider everything from personality of the caregiver to individual needs and preferences of the client. That’s so important to successful caregiving.”

Retain our people as employees, not contractors. Working with a home care provider like TheKey alleviates a lot of the stress families can feel when recruiting and retaining caregivers on their own. Working with us, families tap into a team of well-supported employees who are vetted, trained and enabled to do an exceptional job over the long term.

Train caregivers in our proprietary Balanced Care MethodTM. Great caregiving doesn’t happen by chance. It’s built around a comprehensive approach. “Our Balanced Care Method really sets our caregiving apart for seniors across the Montreal area,” says Thomas. “It’s a unique approach. We train our people to focus on their clients’ health in terms of mind, body and spirit. They are ready to develop all kinds of routines and activities that support seniors across those three areas and it makes a big difference in quality of life — even for someone who’s mobility or cognition is limited.”

Provide one-to-one support for mobility, meal prep, transportation, medication reminders, bathing, dressing and more. Whether travelling to a doctor’s appointment, taking a daily shower or putting together the right ingredients for a nutritious meal: our caregivers customize their focus to the specific needs of individual clients. There’s no one-sized fits all approach to aging, and we’ve designed our caregiving with that in mind.

Scale our in-home caregiving to meet your needs. Schedules and routines look different from one client to the next. At TheKey, our services are flexible. We can offer personal, companion, dementia or other forms of care for just a few hours or 24/7. Says Thomas: “Every care plan begins with a family conversation. We get to know you, and the client we’ll be caring for. Once we understand everyone’s needs and expectations, we can design a great care plan that addresses the priorities that matter most to you.”