Concept

Providing appropriate housing and a continuum of care for seniors to age in place within the Town of Carman and the surrounding municipalities of Dufferin, Thompson, Roland and Grey is of paramount importance and a key priority for our communities.  This priority is undermined by the limitations of our community’s present 70-bed Boyne Lodge Personal Care Home.  

Despite the selfless dedication of caregivers and the on-going commitment by Southern Health-Santé Sud and Manitoba Health to address the limitations created by considerable obsolescence in the facility, it is apparent these limitations are insurmountable without extensive very disruptive and costly renovations.  As the facility was built at a time that could not have anticipated the current personal care needs of seniors, the community is resolute in its position that to sustain our seniors, a new Personal Care Home must be built. 

This commitment is further driven by Southern Health-Santé Sud’s needs assessment that indicates that over the next ten years, demand for PCH beds in the region our communities encompass will exceed supply if no additional beds are added.   This reality has become a call to action for our communities - we need a new personal care home integrated within an “Aging in Place” Campus. To this end, our communities gave a mandate to a committee of local government and community representatives to advance this cause.  This led to the creation of a community non-profit corporation, Boyne Care Holdings, to begin the planning process.

Given the projected demographic  faced by all provinces, of aging baby boomers needing care over the next thirty years, coupled with burgeoning construction costs, the reality is that projected bed needs will be great and the fiscal resources limited.  It is with that dilemma in mind that we have explored a model that would see a new personal care home to serve our region being built by the stakeholder communities, owned by local governments and operated by Southern Health-Santé Sud.   This community owned social enterprise initiative proposes a range of complementary “aging in place” housing options and services. 

As the commitment to our seniors is woven through the fabric of our communities, we have put a considerable effort into exploring this sustainable and community driven model that captures the creative nuances of social enterprise. Citizens in our communities have encouraged us to move ahead, and the stakeholder local governments have all indicated their support. 

We wish to emphasize that our highest priority is the well-being of our senior citizens. Considerable momentum has been built, and our communities are ready and willing to proceed on this project now. We look forward to partnering with Southern Health-Santé Sud and Manitoba Health to work together to meet the needs of our seniors, our communities, and our governments for today and into the future.