Our Difference

We understand the decision to transition to long-term care is one of the most important decisions you will ever make. We want to ensure your decision is a positive one. Below are some of our home’s points of difference:

The calendar is always full. You can be as active as you like.

For some people, the key to living better is filling every day with meaningful activities that bring people together, build bonds and create shared experiences.

Whether it’s tapping the power of music to engage a resident with dementia, attending worship services, participating in exercise classes, or reminiscing with a friendly volunteer, there’s always something going on at Extendicare Medex.

Here, residents lead active and engaged lives.

This is home. Your home.

We want you to feel at home. We’ll support you in becoming an active and engaged member of your new community and enjoy life to the best of your ability.

We have a welcoming and inclusive environment.

Not only do we work very hard to integrate residents into our community and feel at home, we’re also committed to making families feel at home here too. The following are some of the measures we take to help our residents settle in and also help family members feel comfortable and get involved:

• Meet Your Primary Caregiver: Upon arrival, new residents and family members meet their Primary Caregiver in an effort to immediately begin establishing a relationship of trust.
• Meet Fellow Residents: New residents meet their new roommates as well as other residents with whom they will share a table at meal times.
• Meet Our Care Team: Family members also meet program managers and other staff that will be involved in their loved one’s care.
• Welcome Tea: We hold a quarterly Welcome Tea for new residents and family members so they can meet and talk to managers in a relaxed, stress free environment.
• Family Involvement: Family members are encouraged and welcomed to participate in activities with their loved one.
• Resident Care Plan: Family members, along with their loved one participate actively in all aspects of the development of the resident’s Care Plan.
• Personalize Your Room: New residents are encouraged to bring special items from home such as family photos or a bedspread so personalize their room.
• Open Door Policy: We have an open door policy so whenever a family member wants to talk, we’re here to listen. In addition, our social worker is always available to talk privately about coping with the stress and emotions of caregiving.

We connect you to the community.

Maintaining strong connections to others is essential to keeping people active and involved.

Getting you out into the community and bringing the community into our home is important to your quality of life. Here are some of the ways in which the residents and staff get involved with the community, and how the community connects with us:

• Resident Outings: We organize outings once a month for residents. These outings can include everything from shopping excursions, museum tours and picnics on the canal to pontoon boat rides and fun at the Casino.
• Fall Colours Tour: In the fall, we organize a tour out into the countryside to enjoy the breathtaking colours of autumn.
• Christmas Lights Tour: Every Christmas, our residents are taken on a tour of the city to enjoy the bright festive lights.
• Annual Garage Sale: For over 40 years we have hosted an annual Garage Sale on our grounds. Posters are put up in our home and in the community; ads are placed in local media. It is very popular in the community and all proceeds go to our Residents Council to help fund future events and activities.
• Christmas Bazaar: Equally popular in our home and the community is our Christmas Bazaar. Vendors come in from outside and residents have tables to sell crafts and baked goods. Our volunteer staff runs the Christmas Bazaar and all proceeds go to the Residents Council.
• Summer Carnival: In summer, we host a Summer Carnival that is open to the staff, family members, residents and the general public. “Big Sky Ranch” sets up a rescued farm animal petting zoo that features llamas, horses, pigs, donkeys, ducks and more. We have cotton candy, popcorn, hotdogs, live entertainment, face painting and it’s all free.
• Student Placement Opportunities: We provide placement opportunities for students in the RN, RPN, PSW, and Social Work programs at Carleton University, University of Ottawa, Algonquin College and Everest College.
• Community Service Opportunities: We also provide local high school students with the opportunity to earn their 40 hour community service credit.
• Palliative Care Team & Brier Hospice Committee: We are actively involved in the Palliative Care Team and Brier Hospice Committee in the community.
• “Live Work Play” : We work with “Live Work Play”, a local organization that finds meaningful work for people with disabilities, by providing one job every summer on our landscaping staff.
• Meeting Space: We provide space free of charge for local chapters of the Alzheimer’s society, the Heart and Stroke Foundation and others to hold monthly meetings.