GUELPH – If anyone can say how residents of Guelph and Wellington County have been managing this past year, it’s Sarah Haanstra.
SARAH HAANSTRA
She is manager of Toward Common Ground, an agency based in Guelph that has been compiling “Vital Focus” reports containing data on specific sections of the population in Guelph and Wellington County since the pandemic began.
Most recently it released a paper on the topic of people with disabilities and the impact the pandemic has had on them.
In the past year the agency has also released reports about the secondary impacts of the pandemic on families with children, food insecurity, alcohol and substance abuse, mental health, and employment.
There will also be future reports on older adults, the digital divide and innovations and collaboration.
For the report on people with disabilities, the data collected by the Canadian Mental Health Association in May 2020 found that Canadians with disabilities are twice as likely as the general population to be having trouble coping since the pandemic began.
These issues include:
- job loss and financial issues;
- challenges with mask usage and exemption policies;
- access to education;
- access to healthcare, community programs and services;
- changes in services or activities;
- housing and homelessness challenges; and
- negative effects of working from home and physical distancing.
“Many were issues we know existed. The pandemic has exacerbated them and made them more acute,” Haanstra said.
Previous reports indicate that families with children, while appreciating the time together, are having a hard time with online learning – a recurring situation over the year as schools have been open and then closed for long periods of time.
Some people have lost their jobs, and while the federal government was quick to provide financial assistance, in many cases it has not been enough to pay the bills.
Those working from home often face challenges as well, especially if there are children vying for computer time for school.
Food programs have changed and it’s not as easy as it used to be to access food banks or other services.
Alcohol and substance abuse are also on the rise. And anxiety and depression among the general population is higher than ever.
Haanstra said while it’s been a difficult year on everyone, there is an opportunity to improve lives when the pandemic is over.
“Resilience means bouncing back from difficult times and we have the opportunity to build resilient communities,” Haanstra said.
“We can learn what worked and what did not work and embed equity in services and systems. We can use evidence and research to develop new programs and policies.”
Haanstra said the goal of these Vital Focus reports is for agencies, institutions, governments and businesses to consider what the reports have found and the recommendations they offer.
“We don’t have to return to normal. We can return to what’s best for the people who live here,” she said.
