About Us

Program History

In 1999, a year before the Caregivers Out of Isolation project was launched, a number of representatives from Newfoundland and Labrador organizations came together at a caregiving conference at Mount St. Vincent University, Nova Scotia. At the end of the conference, they set themselves the modest but achievable goal of continuing to meet on a regular basis to discuss the activities of each of their organizations as they related to family caregiving.

In 2000 the Caregivers Out of Isolation project was established by the Seniors Resource Centre of Newfoundland and Labrador, with a grant from the J.W. McConnell Family Foundation. At that time, the Foundation had launched a 3-year national initiative to support innovative approaches to obtaining “Respite for Family Caregivers.” Initially, the Seniors Resource Centre’s project’s goals were to identify the needs of family caregivers, connect them to information and other resources, and stimulate support for caregivers through community volunteer groups and formal caregiver systems. After establishing a toll-free Caregiver Line, a newsletter and assessing caregivers’ needs province-wide, it soon became apparent that there were minimal resources available for family caregivers in Newfoundland and Labrador, especially in rural communities. Expanding on the networking model established by the organizations involved in the Mount St. Vincent-based initiative described above, the project started to facilitate the development of Regional Caregiver Networks, based in various communities throughout the province.

It is significant to note that these Networks were not a goal of the original project, but grew out of a need. At the end of Phase 1, the project was granted an additional 2 years to further explore the concept of Regional Caregiver Networks, especially in relation to rural communities. The Networks and provincial coordination through the Caregivers Out of Isolation program will be kept going until March 2007 with grants from the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and the federal New Horizons program – we hope to find a way to let this work continue!


	About Us Caregiver-Line Newsletter Regional Caregiver Network Written Resources Special Events Contact Us Seniors Resource Home About Us Program History Caregiver's Bill of Rights Facts about Family Caregivers Take Some Advice From the Experts VON Canada: Caregiver Connect Portal Program History In 1999, a year before the Caregivers Out of Isolation project was launched, a number of representatives from Newfoundland and Labrador organizations came together at a caregiving conference at Mount St. Vincent University, Nova Scotia. At the end of the conference, they set themselves the modest but achievable goal of continuing to meet on a regular basis to discuss the activities of each of their organizations as they related to family caregiving. In 2000 the Caregivers Out of Isolation project was established by the Seniors Resource Centre of Newfoundland and Labrador, with a grant from the J.W. McConnell Family Foundation. At that time, the Foundation had launched a 3-year national initiative to support innovative approaches to obtaining “Respite for Family Caregivers.” Initially, the Seniors Resource Centre’s project’s goals were to identify the needs of family caregivers, connect them to information and other resources, and stimulate support for caregivers through community volunteer groups and formal caregiver systems. After establishing a toll-free Caregiver Line, a newsletter and assessing caregivers’ needs province-wide, it soon became apparent that there were minimal resources available for family caregivers in Newfoundland and Labrador, especially in rural communities. Expanding on the networking model established by the organizations involved in the Mount St. Vincent-based initiative described above, the project started to facilitate the development of Regional Caregiver Networks, based in various communities throughout the province. It is significant to note that these Networks were not a goal of the original project, but grew out of a need. At the end of Phase 1, the project was granted an additional 2 years to further explore the concept of Regional Caregiver Networks, especially in relation to rural communities. The Networks and provincial coordination through the Caregivers Out of Isolation program will be kept going until March 2007 with grants from the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and the federal New Horizons program – we hope to find a way to let this work continue!