Golden: The End of Ageism
Please watch “Golden: The End of Ageism” as it explores ageism through the eyes of activists including ILC President Margaret Gillis on the need for a United Nations Convention on the Rights of Older Persons.
CTV News Segment: Improving standards at care homes
Featuring ILC Canada President, Margaret Gillis. Watch here.
The Dementia Dialogue Podcast.
This Dementia Dialogue episode outlines the connection between human rights and dementia, with particular attention to the impact of COVID-19 on long term care. Mario is a dementia activist who is a co-creator of a Canadian Charter of Rights for Canadians with Dementia for the Alzheimer Society of Canada. Laura Tamblyn-Watts of CanAge is a lawyer and leading advocate for older people and Margaret Gillis is the President of the International Longevity Centre, Canada and is working to have Canada adopt the UN Convention on the Rights of Older Persons. Each gives their own advice on what listeners can do to promote human rights for people with dementia. Listen here.
CBC Radio Interview on Long Term Care and COVID-19: Existe-t-il un foyer de soins de longue durée idéal?
May 29, 2020 Featuring ILC Canada President, Margaret Gillis. Read here.
CBC National Radio “The House” with Chris Hall
April 18, 2020 The high number of COVID-19 deaths among residents of long-term care homes points to the urgent need to reform Canada's seniors' care system, says an advocate for the human rights of seniors. Margaret Gillis, President of the International Longevity Centre-Canada, said the lack of uniform standards for seniors' care at the federal level leaves older Canadians vulnerable to both elder abuse and tragedies like the COVID-19 pandemic.
CTV National Interview and print report Michele Bruno
April 15, 2020 "There is a lot of lumping together of older people like it's nothing in terms of the statistics," adds Margaret, who is also president of the International Longevity Centre Canada, an organization dedicated to the needs and rights of older people. "These are people who are loved, who have lots of life left to live and lots of things left to do and their lives are important too." She says the COVID pandemic has "really laid bare a lot of ageism and treatment of older people." Read here.
“Human Rights don’t have a best before date”: Covid 19 lays bare ageism
April 13, 2020 We need not look any further than the horror story unfolding in nursing homes and long-term care facilities in Canada and around the world. We have known from the get-go that people in institutional care were among the most vulnerable to a pandemic. Yet little was done to protect them.
Dementia Friends
On June 5th, the Government of Canada and the Alzheimer Society of Canada announced the launch of Dementia Friends Canada, a program seeking to help understand the effects and dispel the myths associated with people suffering from dementia in order to reduce the stigma associated with having dementia. Based off similar successful programs from the United Kingdom and Japan, Dementia Friends has set a goal of 1 million registrants by Spring 2017.