Thu, February 25, 2021
4:00 PM – 5:00 PM EST

The COVID-19 pandemic has put older people at risk, exposing the existential, socio-political, and ethical problems related to caring for vulnerable populations during crises. This webinar explores issues of aging and ageism during pandemic and post-pandemic times with three experts in the field:

• Meghan Joy, Concordia University – author of The Right to an Age-Friendly City: Redistribution, Recognition, and Senior Citizen Rights in Urban Spaces (MQUP)
• Nancy Walton, Ryerson University – author of Ethics and Issues in Contemporary Nursing, 3rd edition (Nelson)
• Andrew V. Wister, Simon Fraser University – co-author (with Theodore D. Cosco) of Resilience and Aging: Emerging Science and Future Possibilities(Springer)

“Pandemic: COVID-19 in an Aging World” is the fourteenth installation of the MLC Research Centre & Gallery’s webinar series that began on April 2, 2020 as an urgent cultural response to the crisis.

Registration via Eventbrite

Carrie Anne Marshall (Assistant Professor, School of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Health Sciences) and her team published pilot study findings about homelessness and boredom in 2019. This initial inquiry led to a national study that is now wrapping up, following interviews with 167 individuals with lived experience and 20 service providers across three Canadian cities. Discover more about the study findings in this infographic

Want to learn more? Carrie discusses her program of research in the area of boredom and homelessness in this video: Boredom and meaningful activity in adults experiencing homelessness.

Dismantling structural stigma requires recognizing that stigma is baked into all aspects of the system. To address structural stigma, we must advocate for structural change.

Read Javeed Sukhera’s recent article, Structural stigma against mental illness is ‘baked in’ to our health system, and that affects care, in The Conversation.

Ninety-three per cent of older Canadians (age 65+) live in the community, and one in four provides care for family or friends with long-term health conditions or disabilities. Challenging circumstances are not a new phenomenon for these caregivers, but COVID-19 has complicated and amplified their situations.

Read the full article by Anna Garnett, Melissa Northwood, and Ruheena Sangrar in The Conversation.

Anna Garnett spoke with Brian Bourke on AM570 News on February 2, 2021 about the toll of the pandemic on older adults who care for other family or friends. Listen to the interview (begins at the 88:25/132:41 mark).