Bill 121, Improving Dementia Care in Ontario Act, 2024

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This Explanatory Note was written as a reader’s aid to Bill 121 and does not form part of the law.
Bill 121 has been enacted as Chapter 32 of the Statutes of Ontario, 2024.

The Bill enacts the Improving Dementia Care in Ontario Act, 2024, which would require the following:

   1.  The Minister of Health must develop a provincial framework designed to support improved access to dementia care. The Minister must table a report setting out the provincial framework in the Legislative Assembly and, afterwards, must prepare and table a report on the state of dementia care in Ontario. Each report must be published on a Government of Ontario website.

   2.  The Ministry of Colleges and Universities must review its “Personal Support Worker Standard” to determine if certain changes should be made, including whether to require in-depth learning about person-centred dementia care.

Bill 121 2024

An Act to enact the Improving Dementia Care in Ontario Act, 2024

His Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Provincial framework on dementia care

Purpose

1 (1)  The purpose of this section is to develop a framework to ensure that every Ontarian has access to quality dementia care.

Development of framework

(2)  The Minister of Health shall develop a provincial framework designed to support improved access to dementia care, provided through hospitals, home care, long-term care homes, hospices and community care services, that, among other things,

  (a)  promotes person-centred dementia care;

  (b)  defines what person-centred dementia care is;

  (c)  identifies the person-centred dementia care training and education needs of health care providers as well as other caregivers;

  (d)  identifies measures to support dementia care providers;

  (e)  identifies research and common data elements on dementia care;

   (f)  identifies measures to facilitate equitable access to dementia care across Ontario, including strategies to increase awareness of programs such as the First Link program offered through the Alzheimer Society of Ontario;

  (g)  identifies measures to facilitate consistent access to dementia care across Ontario;

  (h)  takes into consideration existing dementia care frameworks, strategies and best practices;

   (i)  reviews Quality Health Ontario’s Quality Standard entitled “Dementia: Care for People Living in the Community”;

   (j)  takes into consideration and supports the needs of specific patient populations, including women, francophone and those diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s dementia; and

  (k)  leverages the expertise and capacities of other key partners in Ontario’s health system, such as the Ministry of Long-Term Care, Ministry for Seniors and Accessibility, Ministry of Colleges and Universities, The Alzheimer’s Society of Ontario, the Ontario Brain Institute, Ontario Health, Ontario Health Teams and other providers and organizations.

Same

(3)  The Minister shall consult with dementia care providers, other affected ministries, the federal government and any other persons or entities, and shall consider information and feedback from those consultations, as well as from previous consultations, in the development of the framework.

Same, consultations

(4)  The Minister shall initiate the consultations referred to in subsection (3) in a timely manner.

Report to Assembly

(5)  The Minister of Health shall prepare a report setting out the provincial framework on dementia care and shall lay the report before the Assembly in a timely manner after this Act comes into force.

Publication

(6)  The Minister shall publish the report referred to in subsection (5) on a Government of Ontario website, in a timely manner after the report is laid before the Assembly.

Report re state of dementia care in Ontario

(7)  The Minister of Health shall prepare a report on the state of dementia care in Ontario and shall lay the report before the Assembly in a timely manner after laying the report referred to in subsection (5) before the Assembly.

Publication

(8)  The Minister shall publish the report referred to in subsection (7) on a Government of Ontario website, in a timely manner after the report is laid before the Assembly.

Personal support worker programs

2 (1)  The Ministry of Colleges and Universities shall review its “Personal Support Worker Standard” to determine whether changes should be made to require any or all of the following:

   1.  In-depth learning about person-centred dementia care.

   2.  Experiential training and placements that involve working with patients living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

   3.  Learning about and practicing communication and de-escalation techniques such as gentle persuasive approaches or other accredited techniques.

Report to Assembly

(2)  The Minister of Colleges and Universities shall prepare a report setting out the results of the review required by subsection (1) and shall lay the report before the Assembly within one year after the day on which this Act comes into force.

Publication

(3)  The Minister of Colleges and Universities shall publish the report on a Government of Ontario website within 10 days after the day on which the report is tabled in the Assembly.

Commencement

3 This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Short title

4 The short title of this Act is the Improving Dementia Care in Ontario Act, 2024.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The Bill enacts the Improving Dementia Care in Ontario Act, 2023, which would require the following:

   1.  The Minister of Health must develop a provincial framework designed to support improved access to dementia care. The Minister must table a report setting out the provincial framework in the Legislative Assembly and, afterwards, must prepare and table a report on the state of dementia care in Ontario. Each report must be published on a Government of Ontario website.

   2.  The Ministry of Colleges and Universities must review its “Personal Support Worker Standard” to determine if certain changes should be made, including whether to require in-depth learning about person-centred dementia care.

Bill 121 2023

An Act to enact the Improving Dementia Care in Ontario Act, 2023

His Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Provincial framework on dementia care

Purpose

1 (1)  The purpose of this section is to develop a framework to ensure that every Ontarian has access to quality dementia care.

Development of framework

(2)  The Minister of Health shall develop a provincial framework designed to support improved access to dementia care, provided through hospitals, home care, long-term care homes, hospices and community care services, that, among other things,

  (a)  promotes person-centred dementia care;

  (b)  defines what person-centred dementia care is;

  (c)  identifies the person-centred dementia care training and education needs of health care providers as well as other caregivers;

  (d)  identifies measures to support dementia care providers;

  (e)  identifies research and common data elements on dementia care;

   (f)  identifies measures to facilitate equitable access to dementia care across Ontario, including strategies to increase awareness of programs such as the First Link program offered through the Alzheimer Society of Ontario;

  (g)  identifies measures to facilitate consistent access to dementia care across Ontario;

  (h)  takes into consideration existing dementia care frameworks, strategies and best practices;

   (i)  reviews Quality Health Ontario’s Quality Standard entitled “Dementia: Care for People Living in the Community”;

   (j)  takes into consideration and supports the needs of specific patient populations, including women, francophone and those diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s dementia; and

  (k)  leverages the expertise and capacities of other key partners in Ontario’s health system, such as the Ministry of Long-Term Care, Ministry for Seniors and Accessibility, Ministry of Colleges and Universities, The Alzheimer’s Society of Ontario, the Ontario Brain Institute, Ontario Health, Ontario Health Teams and other providers and organizations.

Same

(3)  The Minister shall consult with dementia care providers, other affected ministries, the federal government and any other persons or entities, and shall consider information and feedback from those consultations, as well as from previous consultations, in the development of the framework.

Same, consultations

(4)  The Minister shall initiate the consultations referred to in subsection (3) in a timely manner.

Report to Assembly

(5)  The Minister of Health shall prepare a report setting out the provincial framework on dementia care and shall lay the report before the Assembly in a timely manner after this Act comes into force.

Publication

(6)  The Minister shall publish the report referred to in subsection (5) on a Government of Ontario website, in a timely manner after the report is laid before the Assembly.

Report re state of dementia care in Ontario

(7)  The Minister of Health shall prepare a report on the state of dementia care in Ontario and shall lay the report before the Assembly in a timely manner after laying the report referred to in subsection (5) before the Assembly.

Publication

(8)  The Minister shall publish the report referred to in subsection (7) on a Government of Ontario website, in a timely manner after the report is laid before the Assembly.

Personal support worker programs

2 (1)  The Ministry of Colleges and Universities shall review its “Personal Support Worker Standard” to determine whether changes should be made to require any or all of the following:

   1.  In-depth learning about person-centred dementia care.

   2.  Experiential training and placements that involve working with patients living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

   3.  Learning about and practicing communication and de-escalation techniques such as gentle persuasive approaches or other accredited techniques.

Report to Assembly

(2)  The Minister of Colleges and Universities shall prepare a report setting out the results of the review required by subsection (1) and shall lay the report before the Assembly within one year after the day on which this Act comes into force.

Publication

(3)  The Minister of Colleges and Universities shall publish the report on a Government of Ontario website within 10 days after the day on which the report is tabled in the Assembly.

Commencement

3 This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Short title

4 The short title of this Act is the Improving Dementia Care in Ontario Act, 2023.