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Wikwemikong Nursing Home's Accessibility Plan
Message from the CEO: Elizabeth Cooper, Administrator
Wikwemikong Nursing Home is committed to serving all residents and visitors including those with limitations and disabilities in keeping with our mission of our home, where each elder and visitor is honored, respected, and care for in a compassionate loving environment that promotes dignity they deserve. We believe in diversity and equality to ensure everyone receives their goods and services with standards of excellence, regardless of any limitations or disabilities. We are committed to remove and prevent any barriers identified and ensure accessibility for all Elders, visitors, and staff members.
We will continuously work towards improving accessibility and welcome new initiatives. We are removing barriers, both physically and mentally. We have introduced the best practices, such as new staff orientation and AODA training with our Surge Learning, to ensure our staff are properly educated. Wikwemikong Nursing Home is committed to making our Long-Term Care Facility and its services available for all, meeting all the regulatory requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
Executive summary
Policy Statement:
Wikwemikong Nursing Home will take all practical measures which will ensure the safety and security of the facility and are obligated to achieve accessibility through meeting its requirements to Regulation. 0l Reg. 191/11, s. 3(1). •
The Accessible Canada Act (ACA) and the Accessible Canada Regulations (regulations) require that federally regulated entities prepare and publish accessibility plans.
Under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), 2005, Wikwemikong Nursing Home must meet the requirements of accessibility standards established by regulation. This policy incorporates the accessibility standards for customer service for the organization, in accordance with the Ontario Regulation 429/07. This policy applies to all employees, of the organization, Board of Directors, Volunteers, External Agents, and contracted service provider staff.
Wikwemikong Nursing Home is committed to providing the core components of the Accessibility Act listed:
• A. Use of Service Animals Responsibility
• B. Use of Support Persons
• C. Notification of Service Disruption
• D. Accessibility Training
• E. Feedback process
• F. Assistive Devices and Communications.
Introduction
Wikwemikong Nursing Home is one of the Long-Term Care Facilities and is well known for its uniqueness as it located on First Nations Land. Wikwemikong Nursing Home is a diverse facility that includes differences related to race, ethnicity, national origin, gender expression and presentation, sexual orientation, religion, age, ability and socioeconomic status. We commit to promoting recognition and appreciation of diversity, multiculture and working towards a greater common goal. We believe that it is critical to our success in promoting freedom of thought and opinion with respect. Decisions and opinions that we make were rooted in our values using our seven grandfather teachings: Wisdom, Love, Respect, Bravery, Honest, Humility and Truth.
Wikwemikong Nursing Home provides an equal opportunity for employees and welcomes applications from all qualified individuals of Indigenous People including visible minorities, and persons with disabilities. For qualified job applications that require accommodation, you will be consulted to ensure equitable accommodation and recommendations for specific needs. You will also be provided with an equal opportunity to express your needs if your application is selected to proceed in our process for hiring.
Wikwemikong Nursing Home strives to meet the needs of its employees, residents and visitors with disabilities and is strategizing to prevent and remove barriers to accessibility. We are committed to fulfilling our requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 20025. This plan outlines the steps we are taking to meet those requirements and to improve opportunities for people with disabilities. This plan is reviewed and updated at least once every 5 years.
Section 1. Past Achievements to Remove and Prevent Barriers
Customer Service
Wikwemikong Nursing Home is committed to providing accessible customer service to people with limitations and disabilities and will provide goods and services to people with limitations and disabilities within a time frame. A feedback process to identify any gaps or barriers to service is established and posted at the front entrance display board.
Information and Communications
Wikwemikong Nursing Home will ensure that all elders, visitors and customers have access to appropriate feedback mechanisms, concern form and the ability to contact in a variety of ways such as website, phone, email, verbally regarding any concerns.
Employment
Wikwemikong Nursing Home has now recognized Diversity, Inclusion and Accommodation within any Job Posting. We strive to meet accommodation requirements. Posting on multiple sites such as job bank, community posting and website posting.
Training
Wikwemikong Nursing Home has within the organization an online Surge Learning platform that has allowed all existing employees annual training and new employees training on orientation. The recent initiative added, Ontario Human Rights code and AODA training initiated for all employees and orientation.
Design of Public Spaces
Wikwemikong Nursing Home has a designated spot in the front of the entrance specifically designed for parking spaces to accommodate people with disabilities, wide entrance with large doors and push button wheelchair accessible entrance door.
Section 2. Strategies and Actions
Wikwemikong Nursing Home is committed to providing accessible patient, visitor and customer service to individuals with disabilities by providing goods, services and facilities to all with disabilities within the same quality and timeframes as others.
Customer Service
Wikwemikong Nursing Home has a software Surge Learning that can be customized to add new initiative learning modules. Our most recent successful uploaded learning was the Ontario Human Rights code and AODA introduced to all staff for the first time and all staff have completed the new annual training and all staff on orientation assigned.
Information and Communications
We are committed to providing information and communications accessible to all individuals with disabilities in a variety of ways. Using our website to post our improvements and feedback processes with new initiatives.
Employment
Wikwemikong Nursing Home is committed to fair employment practices with ongoing accessibility practices. We have implemented Diversity Inclusion and Accommodation information on our Job bank postings. For the future plans for our New Elder Long-Term Care we are in the planning stage of developing individual accommodation plans for employees by the year 2027.
Consultations Plans
Wikwemikong Nursing Home sets out the manner in which our organization consulted persons with disabilities in the preparation of our accessibility plan. While maintaining respect for consultation participants’ right to privacy. The plans for the Wikwemikong Nursing home fall under the Long-Term Care Homes Facility design. There are plans to rebuild a newer 96 bed Elders Home in consultation with 3rd. line studio snider architects project number PROJ 727.
ARTICLE 5: ACQUISITION OF GOODS OR SERVICES
5.1 Acquisition. If the Operator acquires goods, services, or both, for the purpose of carrying out the Project up to the time of Total Completion of all the Beds, it shall do so through a process that promotes the best value for money, and that complies with Applicable Law and Applicable Policy.
5.2 Construction Services and Work. The acquisition of services to carry out the Construction
(including building material supplied under a construction services contract with a General Contractor or Subcontractor)
Training
Wikwemikong Nursing Home is committed to ensure training is completed with the Ontario’s accessibility laws and the Ontario Right Code as it applies to individuals with disabilities. All training will be done annually by new year and on orientation with our Surge Learning Online platform.
Training under Surge Learning to date accomplishment
Training that the Wikwemikong Nursing Home will provide to the staff, about accessibility and about communicating with people with different types of disabilities will be done on Surge Learning Annually due January 1 St. for all staff and on Orientation.
Design of Public Spaces
Our plan for a new Elders Home will meet accessibility laws when building public spaces by December 2027. We plan to upgrade our current facility side door to upgrade an automatic wheelchair accessible door that will allow access to all to the outdoor smoking shack by July 2025.
Feedback process:
Wikwemikong Nursing Home defines feedback as a positive way of improving and will be included in our Annual Survey and as part of our quality improvement plan and if urgent may submit a concern process through the form posted at the front entrance or may be made in person, by telephone, in writing, or email. A copy of the concern form is also attached to this document. Whereas the individual who has provided the feedback has requested a response or the manager believes that a response if required will respond within 10 days.
For more information on this accessibility plan, or concerns please contact:
Elizabeth Cooper, Administrator
705-859-3107
Email: [email protected]
Wikwemikong Nursing Home has a feedback process on barriers of the accessibility plan can be submitted to Elizabeth Cooper, Administrator/Director of Care under the concerns form posted at the main entrance of the facility or by contacting the person designated:
Mail:
Elizabeth Cooper, Administrator. 2281 Wikwemikong Way, Wikwemikong, Ontario P0P 2J0 email:
[email protected] Phone: 705-859-3107 ext., 222 or Fax: 705-869-2057
**The Accessibility plan is available in alternative formats and communication supports, upon request, and can be viewed on our home page website:
https://www.wikwemikongnursinghome.com/
• Barriers: Barriers in each area as identified by employees, clients, consultation participants, or others can be hindering and can be addressed with the feedback process and actions will be taken and tracked with intended outcomes.
Areas other than those identified under section 5 of the ACA
Remedial Plan
Wikwemikong Nursing Home may identify, remove, or prevent barriers in areas that are not listed in consultation, barrier description and actions with plan for correction within 10 days of receipt in writing if requested.
Section 3. Preventative and Emergency Maintenance of Accessible Elements
Preventative and Emergency Maintenance of Accessible Elements in Public Spaces Pursuant to the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation (section 80.44) under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act,
Wikwemikong Nursing Home has procedures in place for preventative and emergency maintenance of accessible elements in its public spaces.
Public accessible space elements such as exterior paths of travel such as walkways, ramps, railings on ramps where the elements are not covered by the Ontario Building Code, and parking lots are maintained by the Wikwemikong Nursing Home (WNH) Maintenance personnel.
WNH’s has a preventative maintenance plan to keep the elements in good working condition.
• Any disruption to accessible elements due to planned maintenance or repairs impacting customer accessibility will be posted in advance and an alternative pathway will be diverted.
• WNH maintenance personnel will inspect applicable accessible elements that are used regularly by the public and any elements that need repair or have a defect will be identified, addressed and a work order will be generated for the WNH maintenance to arrange a plan for repair.
• In the event, third party information or concern/complaint of an accessible element needs maintenance or repairs, the information will be sent to the Administrator who will then forward to the appropriate personnel to take action. • In cases where it is determined an emergency maintenance or repairs to an accessible element are required, the element will be taken out of service and addressed as priority for repair.
• In the event, the accessible elements are not in working order or pose an immediate danger to safety, steps will be taken immediately, and an alternative arrangement will be put into place, barriers and temporary signage and posting notices.
