Today, the Provincial Government announced $900,000 in funding for Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services to implement a Community Care Home Accessibility Improvements Grant Program to support projects for specialized supportive housing for persons living with mental illness. This investment is aligned with the Provincial Government’s commitment to support community-based mental health services.
This application-based grants program provides an opportunity for privately-operated community care homes to access funding for renovations to existing infrastructure or equipment. The upgrades will support improved accessibility within community care homes and provide residents with long-term mental illness with the supports needed for coordinated, integrated care.
One-time funding up to $75,000 per home will be provided to modernize homes to address accessibility needs of residents. Applicants will have to demonstrate an unmet need related to improved accessibility in the home which supports both physical and mental health needs. As the initiative is aimed at supportive housing, funding for these grants is available under Our Path of Resilience, an action plan to promote life and prevent suicide in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Community care homes are an integral component of the Newfoundland and Labrador health and community services residential care system, providing specialized supportive housing for approximately 140 individuals living with long-term mental illness in home-like settings. More information on the program can be found here.
Quotes
“Community care homes play an integral role in our mental health and addictions program, as they provide residential care and support to those living with severe and persistent mental illness. This funding reinforces our government’s commitment to working with community partners to address their concerns and support them as they provide quality care for persons with long-term mental illness, helping them to transition back into the community. These grants will provide funding for necessary renovations and improvements to support improved accessibility for residents in these homes.”
Honourable Tom Osborne
Minister of Health and Community Services
“The Community Care Program, which specializes in mental health and addictions, has been serving the province for over 40 years on the Avalon Peninsula with generations of experience and aging infrastructure. These funds will go a long way to enable community care homes to address long-standing accessibility issues that have negatively impacted client placement and will allow our residents to age in place which is critical in their care. While this does not address all of our challenges, it is a great start and we would like to thank the Department of Health and Community Service and Minister Osborne for recognizing the need and responding to it.”
Pauline Porter
President, Community Care Home Owners Association
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