The Cornwall standard freeholder.com Reports
Cornwall and area residetns who are dealing with brain injuries will no longer have to travel to Ottawa to get the help they need day-to-day.
Vista Centre has announced they will be opening up a branch office in Cornwall at 55 Water St., effective May 6.
“Vista Centre is a non-profit agency that provides support to people who have an acquired brain injury,” said Project Manager Tammy Kuchynski. “We have a day program, we have an outreach service program and a residential program in Ottawa.”
Kuchynski said the centre will offer outreach support for people in various living situations.
“We have people who are living on their own with their kids, with their parents,” she said. “And the support is geared to household maintenance, executive functioning, memory strategies, basically whatever the need is to manage day to day life.”
The adult day service program provides a social outlet for patients with acquired brain injuries.
“We have a physical fitness component, we’ll have a positive component to it and we’ll have educational sessions like anger management and adjustment to the brain injury,” said Kuchynski.
As well, it will provide a social setting for patients to be able to get out and meet with others with brain injuries.
During the day program, visitors to the centre will also be involved in an art program.
“We aren’t art therapists, but it will be an opportunity to be artistic,” said Kuchynski. The day program is geared towards what the participants want, said Kuchynski. “We take a lot of input from the participants.”
The facility in Cornwall will provide two days of outreach and three days of day programs. Outreach will be Mondays and Fridays and the day programs will run Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m.
“In the Champlain LINH, to be able to bring services to Cornwall is huge,” said Kuchnyski. “We have been trying to do this for a long time. A lot of people don’t want to have to come to Ottawa. This is a good opportunity for Cornwall.”
People can either be referred or self-referred to the program through Community Care Access Centre.
“Or they can drop by the office Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday after we open May 6,” said Kuchnyski.
The centre is hoping to serve 27 individuals with brain injuries from in and around the area for the day program and eight individuals for the outreach program. The numbers are based on the need for the Centre in this area.
“Right now for our day program we have close to 20 people, but we are prioritizing,” she said. “People who have no support or no service at all versus those living in nursing homes.”
“The people we have are really looking forward to this,” said Kuchnyski.
The Centre is planning an Open House on May 1 so members of the community can come out and see what they have to offer. A grand opening with an official ribbon cutting ceremony will take place on May 15.