Impressed by the transformation of a Peel Region dementia unit, Toronto Mayor John Tory has told his staff to explore the possiblity of bringing the same “Butterfly” program to city-run nursing homes.Tory sent a letter to Toronto’s long-term care general manager Reg Paul, ordering a full examination of Peel’s success, after reading a Star investigation called The Fix. The four-part series detailed a year-long experiment in the Malton Village Redstone dementia unit that tossed out Ontario’s traditional task-focused care, replacing it with laughter, friendship, energy and, love.In an interview, Tory said he was captivated by the results — particularly the increase in job satisfaction for Redstone’s workers. Peel staff said data from the first year showed a dramatic drop in staff absenteeism, an annual savings of $55,000.“I was impressed by the Toronto Star story on a Peel nursing home and the success it has had with the Butterfly model of dementia care,” Tory wrote to Paul, who oversees Toronto’s 10 nursing homes with 2,641 residents and 3,300 full and part-time staff.“Given the data that Peel Region has on resident and employee satisfaction, I believe it is a program that is worth investigating here in Toronto,” he wrote. “I want Toronto’s long-term care homes to offer the best care for our seniors, including seniors with dementia.“While there is no single answer to the complex and sensitive challenge of caring for seniors with dementia, we must not leave any stone unturned in looking for the best available means of caring for them,” he wrote.Tory said he will request a tour of Redstone, on the Mississauga side of Hwy 427 and Rexdale Blvd.The Toronto mayor is welcome to visit, said Cathy Granger, Peel’s director of long term care.“It is difficult to put into words how joyful and positive it is. Seeing is believing,” said Granger. “That said, he ...
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