Innovation in health care education: North Bay facility will offer senior care, educate future healthcare workers.

• Author: Kelly, Lindsay
• Position: NORTH BAY

Canadore College is embarking on a new approach to health and human care education, which will also introduce a unique model of care for aging residents.

Last October, the North Bay school announced it had been approved for the final piece of funding for the $12.5-million Village Living Wellness and Learning Centre, to be built on the Canadore campus.

Described as an" intergenerational living, teaching and learning facility," the centre will include a 144-unit retirement residence that will offer Canadore students opportunities for learning and teaching in the health and human service programs while under the guidance of faculty who are regulated health professionals.

It will include retirement accommodations, short-term stay and rehabilitation beds, along with academic space to train students in areas related to senior care, such as nursing, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, personal support work, mental health and addictions, dental hygiene, recreational therapy, and more.

For its construction, the federal government is contributing $5.6 million, the province is contributing $800,000, and Canadore is contributing $6.1 million.

The facility is expected to create 100 jobs during construction and 120 permanent jobs once operational.

Canadore College president George Burton said the new facility, which has been five years in the making, was inspired by the simple idea that there's always room for improvement.

"When we look at health care itself, which is a complex issue, we always have to be looking at better approaches to health care, whether it's preventative medicine or the healing process itself," Burton said.

"So we said, quite frankly, is there a better approach to this based on our own experiences and what we see that's already happening?"

Using an interprofessional approach to health care, students and practitioners will incorporate Western, Indigenous and Eastern medicine practices into their work; the prevalent concept is that no one single application is best.

With this holistic approach, Burton believes the school will graduate a new type of healthcare professional, one who recognizes the value in all three areas of medicine and believes in using what works best for the client or patient.

Burton said this type of facility will be invaluable as the Canadian health-care system faces challenges posed by an aging Baby Boomer generation.

"We're trying to get ahead of the curve on this, and I think our graduates will be in very, very...