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Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA)

CarePartners Multi Year Accessibility Plan and Policies

Sections
Statement of Commitment

Our Multi-Year Accessibility Plan

Accessible Emergency Information

Training

Information and Communications

Feedback

Employment

Individual Accommodation Plans

Individual Workplace Emergency Response Information

Design of Public Spaces

Contact

Original: December 14, 2014
Updated: December 2023

The 2014 –2028 Accessibility Plan outlines the measures and actions CarePartners has in place to improve opportunities for people with disabilities. CarePartners has implemented several measures since 2014 in order to meet criteria set out in the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. We work diligently to meet AODA requirements, and all work is subject to a review process. This work is highlighted in our Multi Year Accessibility Plan (MYAP) found below. The MYAP is updated every five (5) years.

Statement of Commitment

CarePartners is committed to treating all people in a way which allows them to maintain their dignity and independence, while striving to meet the needs of its employees and patients with disabilities. We endeavor to foster an environment of inclusion and equity and we are working hard to remove and prevent barriers to accessibility where and when they are discovered.

We believe in integration and equal opportunity. We are committed to meeting the needs of people with disabilities in a timely manner and will do so by preventing and removing barriers to accessibility and meeting accessibility requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA).

Our Accessibility Plan outlines the measures and commitments CarePartners holds which aim to improve opportunities and accessibility for those with disabilities and which incorporates the CarePartners Multi-Year Accessibility Plan.

CarePartners is committed to maintaining requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA). Our Multi-Year Accessibility Plan outlines the steps we are taking to meet and maintain those requirements and to improve opportunities for people with disabilities:

Our Multi-Year Accessibility Plan

CarePartners multi-year accessibility plan is available upon request, in several accessible formats. CarePartners reviews this plan regularly to meet any new or changing requirements of the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulations under the AODA.

We are continually working to further identify and remove barriers to access for people with disabilities.

CarePartners’ measures include:

Personal assistive devices including wheelchairs, walkers, assistive devices, portable oxygen tanks, service animals and support persons are all permitted on our premises.
While on our premises, a person with a disability shall be permitted to access their support person at all times. Unless there are overriding health and safety concerns, a person with a disability may choose not to be accompanied by their support at all times should they so choose.
CarePartners will communicate with persons with disabilities in a format that takes accessibility into account.

Accessible Emergency Information

CarePartners is committed to providing our employees and patients with publicly available emergency information in an accessible way upon request. We also provide employees with disabilities with individual emergency response information when necessary.

Training

CarePartners will provide training to employees, volunteers, and contractors on Ontario’s accessibility laws and on the Human Rights Code as it relates to people with disabilities as soon as practicable after being hired and provide training in respect of any changes to the policies. Training will be provided in a way that best suits the actual duties of our employees, volunteers, and contractors.

Training measures include:

an overview of the AODA and the requirements of the customer service standard
how to use equipment or various assistive devices that may be used by patients with disabilities while accessing our services
how to interact and communicate with persons with various types of disabilities
how to interact with persons with disabilities who use an assistive device or require the assistance of a service animal or support person
what to do if a person with a disability is having difficulty in accessing our services

CarePartners maintains records of completed training including the names, roles, and date on which the training was provided.

Information and Communications

CarePartners is committed to meeting the communication needs of people with disabilities. We will consult with people with disabilities to determine information and communication needs.

CarePartners works to ensure all new content created for its company website conforms with WAG 2.0 Level A. CarePartners works to ensure all CarePartners websites and website content conforms with WCAG 2.0 Level AA.

CarePartners will make sure all publicly available information is made accessible upon request by and will continue to do so as new content is added. We do this in the following ways:

Under consultation with those making the request to determine an appropriate accessible format or type of communication support, considering the needs of the person, whether the content is convertible and within CarePartners’ capability, and where it is not in CarePartners capability, we will inform the person in a timely manner.
Providing accessible format materials or communication methods in a timely manner, accounting for the persons’ disability at no additional cost to the person.
Public notification on our public website regarding availability of accessible formats and communication supports/methods.

Feedback

CarePartners will provide processes for receiving and responding to feedback that is accessible to people with disabilities by providing or arranging accessible formats and communications supports upon request. We welcome feedback and discussion, and should you want to communicate with us, we have the following channels available for you to do so directly:

CarePartners Accessibility Team

Phone: 519.804.1745

Email: aoda@carepartners.ca

Mail: CarePartners 400 –140 Columbia Street West, Waterloo ON N2L 3K8

You can contact us through these channels to arrange accessible services should you require further accommodation.

Employment

CarePartners is committed to fair and accessible employment practices. We take the following steps to notify the public and staff that, when requested, CarePartners will accommodate people with disabilities during the recruitment and assessment processes when people are hired.

CarePartners includes the following statement about accommodations of disabilities during the recruitment and assessment process in written job ads posted on our website, on other on-line sites: CarePartners welcomes and encourages applications from people with disabilities; accommodations are available on request for candidates taking part in all aspects of the hiring process.

If requested, we inform applicants by telephone, letter or email of how CarePartners will accommodate people with disabilities during the recruitment and assessment process.
If required, we consult with individual applicants to determine how their needs related to their disability can be accommodated during the recruitment and assessment process. We will provide accommodation appropriate to the applicants’ accessibility needs.
CarePartners, as part of making an offer of employment, will inform the successful applicant of CarePartners measures on accommodating employees with disabilities.

CarePartners takes the following steps to ensure the accessibility needs of current employees with disabilities are considered and to prevent and remove other accessibility barriers identified for current employees:

On learning of an employee’s needs, CarePartners will consult with the individual employee to collect supporting documentation and create an individualized accommodation plan.
Where required, CarePartners will develop individualized emergency response plans. With the employee’s consent, we will share this information with those responsible for aiding in emergencies. These individualized emergency response plans will be reviewed if the employee moves to a different location, in conjunction with a review of overall accommodation needs or if/when CarePartners reviews our general emergency response policies.
CarePartners has developed and implemented a return-to-work process for employees who have been absent due to disability and require accommodations in order to return to work. The process outlines the steps we will take to facilitate the employees’ return to work.
When undertaking any performance management, career development and redeployment processes, including promotion or a position and/or location change, CarePartners will ensure that the accessibility needs of its employees with disabilities are taken into account. This will include a review of any individual accommodation plans that are in place for individual employees.
Where any employee, patient, volunteer, or other person identifies accessibility barriers, CarePartners will work to remove the barriers identified. We will undertake periodic audits to determine whether additional accessibility barriers are present and take steps to remove those barriers identified through this process.
We work to ensure all employees are aware of the supports and accommodation available to employees with disabilities. This information is posted in offices and made available to all employees.
Any significant changes in CarePartners' measures to support employees with disabilities is communicated directly to employees who are affected.
CarePartners will consult with each employee with a disability to determine which accessible formats or communication supports they require and then use that information to determine how to communicate with that employee. If the employee has an Individual Accommodation Plan, then the format for communication is documented in the employee’s Individual Accommodation Plan.

Individual Accommodation Plans

CarePartners will put in place an individual accommodation plan for each employee with a disability for which we have been made aware.

Individual Workplace Emergency Response Information

In conjunction with each employee who has a permanent or temporary disability that may affect the employee’s ability to respond effectively to an emergency (e.g. fire, evacuation, power outages, security incidents), CarePartners will develop an individual workplace emergency response plan and document this information in the employee’s Individual Accommodation Plan, if available.

The individual workplace emergency response plan will be developed when the employee or the employee’s manager/supervisor identifies a need for the plan and will be reviewed if the employee’s needs change, if the employee moves to another physical location in the organization, when the employee’s overall accommodation needs are reviewed, or when the manager/supervisor is reviewing general emergency response plans.

The manager/supervisor and employee will collaborate to develop the plan. If the assistance of other employees is part of the emergency response, then with the consent of the employee with disability, the other employees will be given as much information about the employee with the disability that the assisting employees will need to carry out the plan, but no more.

Design of Public Spaces

CarePartners will meet the Accessibility Standards for the Design of Public Spaces when building or make major modifications to public spaces, including:

Outdoor paths of travel like sidewalks, ramps, stairs, and curb ramps
Accessible off-street parking
Service-related elements such as service counters, fixed queuing lines and waiting areas

To ensure continued service with reduced risk of disruptions, CarePartners will periodically inspect the accessible portions of its public spaces. When any areas are flagged as a possible issue regarding accessibility, we will take steps to correct the deficiency within a reasonable timeframe.

CarePartners has following procedure in place to prevent service disruptions to accessible parts of its public spaces:

In the event of a service disruption, we will notify affected patients, employees, volunteers, contractors, and others who would be directly affected (e.g. a patient’s family member or personal attendant) of the service disruption and inform them of the alternatives available (e.g. a home visit for patients).
We will work to identify the disruption’s cause and duration and give information on alternative services.

Contact

For more information on CarePartners’ accessibility plan, or if you require a copy of the plan in an accessible format, please contact:

CarePartners Accessibility Team

Phone: 519.804.1745

Email: aoda@carepartners.ca

Mail: CarePartners 400 –140 Columbia Street West, Waterloo ON N2L 3K8