Number of dementia patients in Ontario has risen 48% since 2010, new data released by OMA shows
CBC
New data shows that the number of people with dementia is rapidly growing in Ontario and doctors are urging the province to invest in home care now to meet their needs.
There has been a 48 per cent increase in the number of patients with dementia in Ontario since 2010, according to a new analysis of Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) billing released by the Ontario Medical Association (OMA) on Thursday. The OMA represents more than 43,000 doctors.
Dr. Andrew Park, president of the OMA, said resources need to be put in place to better support the province's aging population and people with dementia.
"With an already strained health care system and fewer than 300 dementia care specialists across Canada, we are not prepared to meet their needs," Park said at a virtual news conference.
"This is an issue that needs urgent attention from all levels of government so people can get the care they deserve and our health care system can withstand rising pressures."
Park said dementia is a blanket term for a number of diseases that impact memory and cognitive ability and that interfere with the person's ability to perform daily activities. Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, represents 60 to 70 per cent of cases.
He said dementia is the seventh leading cause of death around the world and a major cause of disability and dependency among older adults. He said dependency impacts the individuals who have dementia and their caregivers, family and communities.
Park said dementia care in Ontario occurs mainly in institutional settings, such as hospitals and long-term care homes.
"We need to change this. Most people living with dementia prefer to remain at home and out of long-term care homes for as long as possible. This helps preserve the quality of life," he said.
In 2020, Park said there were 82,000 home care visits to Ontario residents living with dementia. But according to an analysis by the Alzheimer's Society of Ontario, 2.5 million annual home visits were needed to provide adequate support.
"That's a significant gap in capacity versus demand. Ontario's doctors know that it is important that we act now to shape the future of dementia care and Ontario," Park said.
Dr. Alexandrea Peel, a geriatrician and chair of rural senior care at the Gateway Centre of Excellence in Rural Health in Goderich, Ont., said the total number of people with dementia is increasing because people are living longer with more complex health problems.
Peel said the province estimated the cost of home care in 2020 was $103 a day. In comparison, the cost of long- term care was estimated to be $201 a day and the cost of a hospital stay was estimated to be $730 a day.
She said home care includes nursing care, physical therapy and help with dressing or bathing, while community support services include transportation, meal support and respite care for caregivers.
More than 53,000 Manitobans have accessed birth control at no cost in the first year of the provincial government's free contraception program, the province says.
The Niagara Regional Police Pipe Band is inviting beginners and youth to try its free music program to help carry on the world-calibre musical ensemble's tradition.
Mayors of municipalities across southwestern Ontario say they’ve focused on the things they could control this year, as the U.S. trade war with Canada and the world has hammered local economies.
A house filled with snakes and spiders might be straight out of many people's nightmares, but to longtime exotic pet keeper Nolan Asplund, they’re like family.
The Ontario government is introducing new rules for publicly advertised job postings in the new year, but questions remain over whether the changes will result in tangible benefits for jobseekers.
Did you know ambulance services on Prince Edward Island were once largely provided by funeral homes?
The past 12 months brought big political headlines, new partisan players and plenty of parliamentary surprises. How much do you remember from it all?
The Ontario government has quietly given itself the power to override archaeological protections on development sites.
A freezing rain event that's left roads and trees across southwestern Ontario coated in ice has also seen emergency crews overwhelmed with calls for help from people without power and snapped trees.
Annette Dionne, the last surviving Dionne quintuplet and a champion of children's rights, has died.
The Newfoundland and Labrador government is warning of multiple scams circulating leading up to the holidays.
The painted bunting usually calls the southern U.S. home and travels south at this time of year, but one decided to spend its Christmas holidays up north in Bayfield, N.B.
The Greater Montreal area could see a prolonged period of freezing rain on Monday, with potentially hazardous conditions developing across much of southern Quebec.