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We are at the beginning of a massive shift in how we serve the public. The Canadian population is changing and with it comes a multitude of factors affecting social and public infrastructure at every level of government for the next thirty years. To get an accurate picture of where we are headed though, we need to look at the big picture and include factors we have largely ignored up until now.
Obesity as a key contributor to rising disability rates due to arthritis, diabetes and heart disease and soon to be a major factor in disability legislation and building code.
Family care giving and the probability that caring for a family member often creates physically compromising situations for the caregiver.
Building code has been built around individuals in an environment whereas the norm is quickly becoming a caregiver-based situation.
The needs of people with intellectual, behavioural and cognitive disabilities are not adequately represented in legislation and building code.
We also need to acknowledge that the numbers we are dealing with today do not accurately reflect the grim picture of the future.
| Condition | Canada | Est. 2020/2025/2030 |
| Overweight or Obese | 13.9M | Triple digit growth in obesity rates in the past 30 years. |
| Arthritis | 4.6M | 7.6M |
| Alzheimer and Dementia | 747,000 | 1.4M by 2030 |
| Physical Disability | 3.8M | Double digit growth over next 30 years. |
| Vision Loss/Blindness | 1M | 2M by 2025 |
| Heart and Stroke | 1.6M | 170k new cases per year. |
| Diabetes | 2.5M | 3.7M by 2020 |
| Mental Disability | 2.8M | Unknown but est. 1 in 5 |
| Seniors 65+ | 5M | 8.32M by 2030 |
| Elderly 75+ | 1.6M | 3.5M by 2030 |
These factors are being compounded by steadily increasing waiting list and wait times for social housing and long term care facilities and a severe shortage in housing stock that accommodates seniors and people with disabilities.
Breaking the Retrofit Cycle
After speaking with many operational leaders, we have recognized a trend within real estate called the Retrofit Cycle. It's a term to refer to the endless upgrade to facilities to keep up with changing legislation and code. This cycle is a reactionary response and leads to much higher operational costs over time. Instead of chasing legislation, Adaptability Canada advocates breaking the Retrofit Cycle by getting ahead of the customer needs curve and the recognition that legislation, much like customer need, is evolving.
By Breaking the Retrofit Cycle, you are able to employ universal design principles in your public and work environments to minimize costly retrofit in the future. Simply put, you are wasting money by chasing code when you could do the work once and satisfy both current and future need.
Solutions Designed for How People Actually Use Buildings and Public Spaces
Adaptability Canada was founded on the belief that these challenges can be overcome in a meaningful and affordable way so as to improve service to the public and minimize both reputational and financial risk to the public sector. How? By ensuring any solution is designed based on how people actually use that building or public space. To this end, our services have been designed to serve the complex and evolving needs of the Canadian public sector including:
Federal and Provincial Government
Regional, District and Municipal Government
School Boards, Colleges and Universities
Health and Long Term Care
Social Housing
Public Transportation