12 LONG TERM CARE TODAY Spring/Summer 2019 THIS IS LONG TERM CARE 2019 Join the conversation in Toronto - September 2019 By Vinita Haroun & Dan Levitt T he Ontario Long Term Care Association is partnering with the renowned Global Ageing Network in September 2019 to bring their flagship biennial conference back to Canada for the first time in 20 years. We’ve combined the Association’s annual research and innovation conference, This is Long Term Care, with the Global Ageing Network for an exceptional hybrid event that offers triple the content. This partnership will allow us to tackle a broader slate of issues and developments common to all seniors’ care professionals, regardless of where they live. Our goal is to leverage international expertise to give attendees a wider spectrum of perspectives, best practices, and insights from around the world. Among other topics, we’ll be discussing the rise of dementia, the push for industry innovation, the latest thinking on physical design, and how to attract and retain the talent required to support this burgeoning sector. Workforce planning is one of the biggest issues facing seniors’ care organizations, and it’s a topic that the conference will cover from multiple angles. More of our workforce is entering the older demographic and fewer young people are taking their place. Why not? How do we keep our workforce strong, and what innovations are needed so that we can do our best for our seniors’ population? These are some of the questions we’ll be answering together. Other highlights of the conference will include a series of sub-plenary sessions such as That’s Debatable, a forum on international hot topics with four global aged care leaders; the latest research examining the future of long-term care home models; and the popular Innovators’ Den, which gives entrepreneurs the stage to pitch new products and services to a panel of industry experts. There is tremendous value in having aged care representatives from all over the globe in the same venue. When we only focus on our own jurisdictions, we end up perpetuating the status quo and evolving at a slower pace. As the population ages, we all need to be paying closer attention to how other jurisdictions are dealing with today’s challenges, and the new ideas they’re incorporating to provide the best possible care to people who can no longer live independently. LTCT Vinita Haroun is Director, Research and Knowl- edge Translation at the Ontario Long Term Care Association and This is Long Term Care conference program lead. Dan Levitt is Executive Director of B.C.’s Tabor Village, Adjunct Professor in Gerontol- ogy at Simon Fraser University, Adjunct Professor in the School of Nursing at the University of British Columbia, and Canada’s representative on the Board of the Global Ageing Network. This is Long Term Care 2019 will be held September 17 – 19 at the Beanfield Centre in Toronto. To learn more and to register, please visit thisisltc2019.com.