Re-Designing Long-Term Care for a day well lived

Mark and Sharon will describe the development, background, and progress to date of Providence Living’s new long term care home on Vancouver Island which was inspired by dementia village concepts pioneered in the Netherlands and opened in July 2024. Additionally, they will outline how the transition from a traditional institutional long term care approach to a social-relational model of care is being achieved. Early successes and challenges will be described along with early evaluation learnings that are informing the next four homes that Providence Living are building in Vancouver and northern British Columbia.

Presenters:

Mark Blandford, President & CEO Providence Living: He is an Occupational Therapist who has worked in a variety of healthcare leadership roles with non-profit and regional health authorities in BC. He joined Providence Health Care, Vancouver, in 2020 as Vice President, Seniors Clinical & Operations and since 2023, Mark now serves as President and CEO of PHC’s sister organization, Providence Living.

Sharon Parkes, Director, Operations, Seniors Care (PL/PHC): Sharon has executive oversight for Providence Heath Care long term care homes and of all Providence Living care village operations, including clinical, support services, HR, staffing services and activities related to community and assisted-living provincial licensing. An RN by training, Sharon brings a wealth of experience to this role, having had the opportunity to work in many settings in addition to more than a decade’s worth of operational and strategic leadership experience. Sharon holds a Masters’ degree in Education from the University of Surrey and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing with Honours from Sheffield Hallam University.