Our Approach

Lived Experience Network South East Ontario is a cooperative effort Alzheimer Societies of South East Ontario in collaboration with Providence Care Community Seniors Mental Health Behavioural Support Services. Under their leadership, Lived Experience Facilitator, Sharon Osvald conducts online (Zoom), one on one, phone and email Advisory conversations, gathering input and suggestions for change in hopes of informing supports and services across the region. This regional role is part of the Alzheimer Society of Kingston Frontenac Lennox & Addington.
Advisory conversation topics are brought to the Lived Experience Network South East Ontario from and through Providence Care Community Seniors Mental Health Behavioural Support Services. This feedback enhances the South East Ontario behavioural support services through influencing planning, design, implementation and evaluation of services for those living with dementia or similar diagnoses and their family/care partners. Questions also come from other providers of services to this population including partners from community, hospitals, long-term care and primary care. Summaries are written of these conversations and findings are shared back to the group bringing forth the discussion topic, Lived Experience Network advisors as well as community supports and health care partners through our quarterly e-newsletter report Lived Experience Perspectives and website www.livedexperiencenetworkseo.ca  

Our Lived Experience Facilitator is often invited to take part in regional and provincial online meetings and working groups taking part in discussions about the planning and evaluation of new or ongoing projects, care and support services. From time to time, Lived Experience Network South East Ontario members are invited to take part in a working group or speak, sharing their lived experience inputs at conferences, working groups or workshops within their local region.

Our Work Plan

All of the work of the Lived Experience Network South East Ontario is built upon the following three pillars.

  • Pillar One: Growing the Lived Experience Network
  • Pillar Two: Awareness and Knowledge Exchange
  • Pillar Three: Lived Experience Voice within the System

How We Exchange Knowledge

  1. Intentional Conversations: To provide lived and living experience feedback to enhance the South East Ontario seniors mental health behavioural supports services through influencing the planning, design, implementation and evaluation of services and supports of those living with dementia or similar diagnoses and their families/ care partners across the entire continuum of care.
  2. Ongoing Communication: To build an ongoing and sustainable communication bridge between those with lived and living experience and those developing, providing and evaluating services for those living with dementia or similar diagnoses across the entire continuum of care. 

How The Information is Used:

  • A clear Feedback Loop:  Some discussion opics will have a clear starting and ending point where information is shared and the results of those discussions is seen or implemented soon after.
  • Ongoing Use: Lived Experiences that inform the formation of future projects and work. Stories, input and advice “steeps” the work being done and is looked back on to help inform funding and grant requests or confirm direction. Lived Experiences are also shared as part of ongoing education courses and working groups.

Source of Discussion Topics

  • Health Care and Community Supports Partners: Some advisory discussion topics will come directly from a health care or community supports partner looking for feedback to inform their work, reviewing a project or service in South East Ontario.
  • Through Providence Care: Some advisory discussion topics will come to us through Providence Care Community Seniors Mental Health Behavioural Support Services (informing them as they support the work of others across the entire continuum of care of South East Ontario).
  • From Providence Care: Some advisory discussion topics will come directly from Providence Care to inform the work they do across the South East.
  • Provincial Partners: Some questions may come from provincial partners – including different Alzheimer Societies, the Provincial Coordinating Office of Behavioural Supports Ontario and more.
  • Lived Experience Advisors: Some topics may be developed based on feedback and discussions from Lived Experience Network of South East Ontario members as appropriate.
LEN Approach to Engagement Slides  

Advisory vs Advocacy

While we acknowledge the value and importance of advocacy, we are an advisory group, not an advocacy group. We collect lived and living experience feedback distribute it in quarterly reports called Lived Experience Perspectives and, on our website, so others can implement that advice or share as experience-based perspectives when advocating for change.
  • All past Lived Experience Network of South East Ontario (starting 2024) are archived and available to share –in whole or part – in order to use for educational and advocacy purposes. Visit www.livedexperiencenetworkseo.ca, and go to the Lived Experience Perspectives page and follow the links to the summaries. This website is part of brainXchange and the South East Knowledge exchange.
Advocacy Resources:

Our Vision Statement

Lived Experience Network South East Ontario exists to engage those with living and lived experience and to hear their voices to:
  1. To inform change, therefore improving the quality of community supports and health care and the experience for persons living with dementia or similar diagnoses and their family/friend care partners in South East Ontario.
  2. To facilitate ongoing, active and meaningful participation of persons with living and lived experience of the South East Ontario.
  3. To develop an ongoing knowledge bank for persons who have lived or are living with dementia or similar diagnoses and their family/friend care partners in South East Ontario.
  4. To provide lived experience feedback to enhance the south east Ontario behavioural supports services through influencing the planning, design, implementation and evaluation of services and supports of those living with dementia or similar diagnoses and their families/ care partners across the entire continuum of care.
  5. To build an ongoing and sustainable communication bridge between those with lived experience and those developing, providing and evaluating services for those living with dementia or similar diagnoses across the entire continuum of care. 

Our Goal

Exchanging Knowledge, Partnering for Change.