Author: Phil Tozer, Digital Marketing & Contributor at Neighbourhood Care

Nobody told us homecare in Ontario would be easy, and they didn’t have to. Our sense of duty was born out of a growing need in the province for more trusted and reliable homecare providers that deliver what individuals, especially seniors truly wanted: independence, empowerment, and control of their own life.

From first-hand experiences and a thorough investigation of the current landscape of homecare in Ontario, we knew there must be a better way.

And so, our journey began. A team of like-minded, senior professionals with deep experience in the retirement services industry, health care services, shared services, logistics and customer service, we spent many months searching the continent and the globe, drawing inspiration from key success features of homecare models from around the world and applying our senior healthcare and business experience in determining how such features would work in Ontario. Inspiration came from as far as Buurtzorg in the Netherlands, the highly successful Dutch homecare provider praised for its innovative operating model, demonstrating the importance of self-managing teams and client empowerment.

After almost a year of research and collaboration, our team landed on a care model that organizes layers of care around the client solution at the center.  While there are many advantages designed into our model, one primary benefit is that it prioritizes the relationship stakeholders have the client and the specific service being provided, while minimizing the role that hierarchical relationships between stakeholders play. This ensures the client is always central focus.

In early 2022, Neighbourhood Care Canada was established to provide a full suite of services to empower individuals with the care and support they need. For seniors, it means the ability to thrive in the comfort of their homes as they age and live the lives they have always known.

Today, we credit much of the success of our care model to the thousands of hours our team poured into research homecare around the world, and the application the age-old fundamental service principle of client-oriented design to homecare that ensures our care solutions have the greatest positive impact on our clients’ and their families’ lives.