Madawaska’s Elders Initiatives (MEI)

About the project

Elders in New Brunswick Indigenous communities who stay at home face challenges in accessing medical services, transport, and support. The Madawaska Elders Initiative (MEI) aimed to reduce barriers for Elders living in the Madawaska Maliseet First Nations. This project involved the community and the Elders, participating to identify needs and the existing barriers. MEI provided participants with an electronic tablet that included a mobile app connected to the Madawaska Maliseet First Nation Community Health Center. The app connected participants to local transportation, home support, assistance, and translation. Improved access to these services aimed to keep Elders healthy and living safely at home for longer. This program helped the Elders become more independent, take charge of their health care, and feel safe and secure staying at home. There were 43 participants in this project including 29 women and 14 men. 6 identified as francophone, 8 as anglophone, and 29 self-identified as functional in both English and French.

Conclusions and lessons learned

Offering seniors a mobile app and tablet, coupled with usage training on how to access healthcare and transportation, empowered them to take greater control of their healthcare needs. Seniors learned what services they needed and were able to connect with them. During the pandemic, seniors used the tablets to stay connected with their loved ones and to keep up with the news, which helped to reduce social isolation. The app allowed the project team to track the needs of the seniors and update and add to the project as needs were identified.

Recommendations

This project helped seniors in the Madawaska Maliseet First Nation to access bilingual health and transportation services. The transportation services provided many seniors with safe and secure access tohealthcare, including the journey home. The recommendation from the project is to continue the program and expand it to other Indigenous communities. The project also encouraged continued tablet use and program application training for seniors so that they can take control of their health care, ultimately enabling them to safely live in their homes longer.

To learn more read the complete project findings (PDF 155 KB)

Knowledge transfer