The OutCare Foundation supports patients and their families by raising funds for special projects at palliative care organizations across our region. With input from the Champlain Hospice Palliative Care Program (our regional palliative care program), OutCare identifies the most pressing needs so that regardless of which organization families turn to for help, they receive the quality care they need and deserve.

Our four main priorities are:

• Provide care when it is needed — so more people can benefit from palliative care

• Support families, caregivers and volunteers —– the unpaid caregivers and volunteers who play a crucial role in palliative care

• Connect people to information — improve ease of finding care and support by advancing communication and raising awareness

• Expand knowledge through education

OutCare donors make it possible for us make a difference in these priorities. This report outlines how.

Supporting VolunteersVolunteers are an integral part of palliative care, providing a wide range of support including personal care, respite care for caregivers, and companionship for the patient and their family. The presence of a volunteer is a profound gift for a person facing end-of-life.

Board of Directors

Chairman Kim Devooght

Vice-Chairman John T. Bradley

Treasurer Ian Rathwell

Secretary Greg Lane

DirectorsSharon Carstairs

Ken CochraneMaria Cook

Thomas KearneyBrian MacGregorJoan McGuinness

Ian Warrack

Earlier this year OutCare recognized their valuable contribution and awarded 28 bursaries to palliative care volunteers at nine agencies across Eastern Ontario. These bursaries enabled volunteers to attend full-day palliative care conferences held in English and French in Ottawa last May where they met others working in palliative care, shared their experiences and enjoyed presentations from expert speakers.

“It was a wonderful opportunity to meet with palliative care providers. I have a better understand-ing of how volunteers play a key role in the supportive care framework.”

Dawn Potter, volunteer, Roger’s House

“This work is so meaningful for me as a volunteer, and I know that our clients really benefit from the support we provide. The training I received

on May 3rd has not only deepened my understanding, it has also made me that much more effective in listening to and offering support to our members.”

Michel Gagne, volunteer, Friends of Hospice Ottawa

Making an Impact

2012 Report

Expanding Knowledge through Education

Supporting Students

Education has a powerful impact on the quality of care available to palliative care patients. OutCare is proud to invest in the future of care in our community by supporting students enrolled at Algonquin College pursuing healthcare programs such as practical nursing or personal care worker. Since 2005, 23 students have received these bursaries, two of which were awarded earlier this year to students with an interest in palliative care.

Supporting Healthcare Teams

Currently, palliative care providers across Eastern Ontario cannot easily access the latest training or expertise required to address the complex needs of patients. In response to this

need, Dr. José Pereira, head of palliative care at The Ottawa Hospital and Bruyère Continuing Care, and the Champlain Hospice Palliative Care Program, developed a program called Telelink.

Telelink will connect 12 palliative care sites in our region to the Ontario Telemedicine Network through special video and teleconference equipment.

Through this network, healthcare teams will deliver clinical care and participate in distance education using live, two-way videoconferencing systems. Users will be able to consult on complex cases with experts in the field and will have regular access to workshops and seminars on the latest treatments and cutting-edge research. For example, Telelink will allow doctors,

nurses, social workers and others to join educational academic rounds that take place bi-weekly at the Hospice at May Court.

Telelink will help to improve palliative care knowledge and increase the quality and standard of care offered throughout our community. “The Telelink Project will use exciting new communication technologies to link hospice palliative care providers across the whole region. Physicians, nurses, other healthcare professionals and volunteers will have regular access to education on the latest treatments and learn about cutting edge research in the field. Patients and families will in turn benefit as their caregivers transfer that new knowledge to the bedside,” explains Dr. Pereira.

The response to Telelink has been enthusiastic. Thanks to the generosity of donors such as Cisco Systems, the Community Foundation of Ottawa: The Canyon Foundation Fund, the GlaxoSmithKline Foundation and many donations from individuals, we have made excellent progress toward our goal of raising $160,000 for the equipment and set-up costs to make Telelink a reality.

We look forward to sharing stories of how Telelink helps patients and their families receive specialized care in their own community.

More InformationThe interest and support of people like you is making a difference in people’s lives every day. Thank you.

For more information, please contact our office at (613) 232-2273 or visit our website www.outcarefoundation.org. Join the conversion on Twitter.

Charitable registration number: 88074 5286 RR0001.

214-720 Belfast Road, Ottawa, Ontario K1G 0Z5 Tel: 613 232-2273 Fax: 613 244-1299 www.outcarefoundation.org

“Volunteers are vital members of the palliative care team. In fact, hospice palliative care would simply not exist without them. The work that volunteers do every day on behalf of the dying is what makes our society a better place. It’s the essence of what it means to be human — caring for another person.”

The Honourable Sharon Carstairs, P.C., OutCare Foundation Board Member