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Families rarely need just one thing. A parent may need help bathing, a ride to an appointment, safer meals, dementia guidance, caregiver respite, and a plan for getting home from hospital – all at the same time. The hardest part can be figuring out which organization handles which need.
This Halton guide is designed as a practical map. It does not attempt to list every program. Instead, it explains the main local and provincial doorways, what each is useful for, and where families can turn when they are still unsure.
Important: program names, eligibility, fees, service areas, contact details, and availability can change. This guide was reviewed on August 7, 2026. Confirm time-sensitive information directly with the organization before relying on it.
Start with the need, find the right local doorway, and build a combination of public, community, family, and private support that fits the person.
The care system can feel fragmented because it is made of many different systems. Health services, municipal programs, community organizations, caregiver supports, transportation, hospitals, and private home-care providers do not all use the same eligibility rules or referral processes.
That does not mean families have to become experts. Most people only need to know the next useful call. A good navigator helps identify that call and, when one service cannot solve the whole problem, helps connect the next layer of support.
When families begin with a long list of agencies, the system can feel overwhelming. Begin instead with one sentence: “What is the problem we are trying to solve this week?”
Start with the person’s health-care team, primary-care provider, hospital discharge team, or Ontario Health atHome as appropriate. Sudden or severe symptoms may require urgent or emergency assessment rather than a community-service referral.
Ontario Health atHome is an important doorway for publicly coordinated home and community care. Families considering additional privately arranged support can also speak with a home-care provider about the person’s daily routines, gaps, and risks.
Halton Region’s Older Adults resources and 211 Ontario can help identify programs related to meals, transportation, social services, community supports, and other practical needs.
The local Alzheimer Society and other community dementia programs can provide education, counselling, activities, and caregiver support. A medical assessment is also important when memory or behaviour changes are new, sudden, or unexplained.
The Ontario Caregiver Organization offers navigation and caregiver-specific support. Respite may also be available through public, community, or private services depending on the situation.
Elaine, a composite character based on common caregiving situations, lives in Burlington and is helping her eighty-four-year-old father after a fall. He is back home, but his walking is less steady. He has also started repeating questions and occasionally forgetting whether he has eaten. Elaine is working full time and feels as though every problem has a different phone number.
She begins with Ontario Health atHome to ask about assessment for publicly coordinated services. She uses Halton Region’s older-adult information to learn about practical community options and transportation. Because her father’s memory changes are becoming more noticeable, she contacts the Alzheimer Society for dementia education and caregiver guidance. For her own support, she calls the Ontario Caregiver Helpline.
The family also discovers a gap that the available schedule does not fully cover: her father needs company, meal support, and supervision during a few specific afternoons when Elaine cannot be there. They explore privately arranged home care for those hours.
No one organization “owns” Elaine’s whole problem. The plan works because each service handles a different piece. This is often how community care looks in real life: layered rather than singular.
Ontario Health atHome is the provincial organization that coordinates publicly funded home and community-care services and long-term-care placement. It is a useful starting point when an older adult may need professional or personal support at home, or when a family is unsure what publicly coordinated services may be available.
Depending on assessment and eligibility, services may include nursing, personal support, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, social work, nutrition or other home and community supports. Ontario Health atHome also coordinates long-term-care placement and helps people connect with community services.
Ontario Health atHome states that people can refer themselves, and referrals may also come from family, friends, caregivers, neighbours, physicians, or other sources with the person’s consent. A hospital team may also connect someone during discharge planning.
Ontario Health atHome: 1-833-515-1234. The provincial number routes callers to the appropriate local branch. Website: ontariohealthathome.ca
Availability and the amount or type of publicly funded care are based on assessment, eligibility, and current program capacity. Calling does not guarantee a particular service or number of hours.
Halton Region maintains an Older Adults section covering a broad range of community and municipal information. It is one of the most useful local starting points when the need is practical rather than strictly medical.
Current Halton Region information includes assisted living and supports for daily living, community programs, fall-prevention information, long-term care, Meals on Wheels, transportation, property-tax-deferral information, an Older Adults’ Directory, and town-specific “Need Help” pages.
The directory brings together information on health, housing, transportation, pensions, legal and government services, emergency resources, and other supports. It can be especially useful when a family knows the type of help needed but not the provider name.
Halton Region: dial 311 within Halton, call 905-825-6000, or toll-free 1-866-442-5866. Website: halton.ca/for-residents/older-adults
Halton’s town-specific resource pages for Burlington, Oakville, Milton, and Halton Hills can help narrow services by municipality. Because local providers and phone numbers can change, the current town page is often safer than relying on an old printed list.
Family caregivers often spend most of their energy finding services for someone else. The Ontario Caregiver Organization, or OCO, exists specifically to support Ontario caregivers with information, navigation, education, peer support, and other resources.
The Ontario Caregiver Helpline is available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week by phone at 1-833-416-2273 (1-833-416-CARE). OCO describes the service as free and confidential, available in English and French, with interpretation in many languages on request.
The helpline is not a crisis or counselling line. It can help caregivers understand available services and find the appropriate next resource. Website: ontariocaregiver.ca
A caregiver does not need to be at the point of collapse before asking for help. Call when the system feels confusing, when respite is becoming necessary, when work and care are colliding, or when the caregiver simply needs to understand what supports exist for their own role.
Memory changes affect more than memory. They can change communication, judgement, driving, medication routines, sleep, personal care, safety, and the emotional life of the whole family. Local dementia organizations can help families understand what is happening and respond with more confidence.
The local Alzheimer Society provides dementia education, counselling and support, activities, and programs for people living with dementia and their care partners. Current general toll-free contact is 1-800-565-4614, with a Halton location in Burlington. Website: alzhn.ca
Not every new confusion or behaviour change is caused by dementia progression. A sudden change can have a medical cause and deserves prompt clinical attention. Community dementia programs are valuable supports, but they do not replace appropriate medical assessment.
A person can be medically stable and still struggle at home because there is no food in the refrigerator, no safe ride to an appointment, or too little social contact. These practical needs are easy to underestimate and can determine whether living at home remains sustainable.
Halton Region provides current information on Meals on Wheels and other meal-related resources for older adults and adults with disabilities. Providers differ by municipality. Use Halton’s current Older Adults pages or 311 to confirm the service for the person’s town rather than relying on an old phone list.
Transportation options differ across Burlington, Oakville, Milton, and Halton Hills. Municipal transit, specialized transit, and local alternatives have different registration and eligibility processes. Halton Region’s transportation information for older adults is a useful starting point, and each municipality publishes current transit details.
Libraries, municipal older-adult programs, community centres, faith communities, volunteer visiting, adult day programs, and dementia programs can all reduce isolation. The right option depends on interests, mobility, cognition, language, location, and whether the person is comfortable in groups or prefers one-to-one contact.
211 Ontario connects people with social services, programs, and community supports. Dial 211 or visit 211ontario.ca. It is a useful navigation service when the need is clear but the correct organization is not.
Hospital discharge is one of the moments when families are asked to absorb a great deal of information quickly. Ask the hospital team what support will be needed at home, what has already been referred, what remains the family’s responsibility, and which symptoms or problems should trigger a call for help.
Halton Healthcare operates Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital, Milton District Hospital, and Georgetown Hospital. Its patient information includes discharge planning and social-work support. Current site: haltonhealthcare.on.ca
Halton Healthcare has also expanded Halton@Home, a short-term transitional-care program for eligible medically stable patients who can leave hospital but would benefit from additional support at home. Eligibility, referral pathways, and program scope should be confirmed with the hospital team because these details can change.
Joseph Brant Hospital serves Burlington. Its current discharge-related information includes the LEGHO program, a no-cost short-term transition support for eligible seniors leaving hospital who need extra help at home. Ask the discharge team whether the program is appropriate and currently available. Website: josephbranthospital.ca
Hospital teams may involve Ontario Health atHome when publicly coordinated home services are needed. Families can still ask questions directly if they are unsure what has been arranged. Before leaving, ask for a clear list of follow-up appointments, medication instructions, equipment needs, mobility restrictions, warning signs, and contact information.
Some families add privately arranged home care for the first days or weeks after discharge, especially for bathing, dressing, meals, companionship, transportation, supervision, or hours not covered by other services. Private support should complement, not obscure, the clinical discharge plan.
A resource guide also needs to be clear about situations that should not wait for ordinary navigation.
For an immediate emergency or an imminent threat to safety, call 911.
Ontario’s Seniors Safety Line provides twenty-four-hour support related to elder abuse and neglect. Current number: 1-866-299-1011. It offers live support and can help callers understand options. Website information is available through Elder Abuse Prevention Ontario at eapon.ca.
The appropriate next step depends on the concern. A health-care professional, 211 Ontario, Halton Region, police non-emergency services, legal advice, or an abuse-prevention resource may be relevant. Do not rely on a general guide to assess immediate danger.
Not every resource is about today’s care. Families can reduce future confusion by talking about who would speak for the person if they could not make a health decision, what matters to them in future care, where important documents are kept, and how family members should communicate during a crisis.
Advance Care Planning Ontario provides educational information and workbooks about future health-care conversations, substitute decision-makers, consent, and capacity in Ontario. It is supported by Hospice Palliative Care Ontario. Website: advancecareplanningontario.ca
Advance care planning is not the same as creating a general power of attorney or receiving legal advice. Families with legal questions should consult an appropriate Ontario legal professional.
Start with Ontario Health atHome at 1-833-515-1234, or ask the person’s hospital or health-care team about a referral.
Start with Halton Region at 311 or 905-825-6000 and the Older Adults section at halton.ca.
Call the Ontario Caregiver Helpline at 1-833-416-2273 (CARE).
Contact the Alzheimer Society serving Hamilton Halton at 1-800-565-4614 for education and support, while continuing appropriate medical follow-up for diagnosis or changing symptoms.
Use Halton Region’s current Older Adults resources or call 211 Ontario.
Speak with the hospital discharge team before departure, ask what Ontario Health atHome services are being arranged, and identify any remaining gaps in meals, personal care, supervision, transportation, equipment, or overnight support.
Contact a local home-care provider for an assessment of routines, safety, tasks, caregiver matching, hours, costs, and how the plan will coordinate with family and publicly funded care. ComForCare Home Care Halton can be one such local starting point at 289-862-1122.
Call 911. For elder-abuse or neglect support that is not an immediate 911 emergency, the Seniors Safety Line is 1-866-299-1011.
The strongest community-care plans often use several kinds of help. A daughter may manage appointments. Ontario Health atHome may coordinate a publicly funded service. Meals on Wheels may reduce meal pressure. A dementia program may give the family new communication strategies. A private caregiver may cover specific hours. A neighbour may still take the person to their weekly coffee group.
This is not duplication when each layer has a clear purpose. The key is communication: everyone should know what they are responsible for, where the current care plan is documented, who needs to hear about a change, and which concerns belong with the clinical team.
A resource that was unnecessary six months ago may become important after a fall, hospitalization, driving change, new diagnosis, or caregiver illness. Keep a short contact list, but verify it when you use it. Systems change; a good plan is allowed to change too.
ComForCare Home Care Halton is part of the local support landscape, but it is not the gateway to public services and the resources in this guide are independent organizations. Families should use the public, hospital, community, and charitable services for which they are eligible.
When a family also wants to explore privately arranged home care, ComForCare Home Care Halton can discuss companion care, PSW and personal care, respite, dementia support, transition-home assistance, overnight care, and more continuous support. The purpose of the first conversation is to understand the person’s day and identify whether private care would fill a real gap.
Current ComForCare Home Care Halton contact: 289-862-1122 | comforcare.ca/ontario/halton/
No. Ontario Health atHome coordinates publicly funded home and community care and long-term-care placement in Ontario. Private home-care companies arrange services purchased privately or through other funding arrangements. Some families use both.
Ontario Health atHome states that self-referrals and referrals from family, friends, caregivers, neighbours, physicians, and others can be made with the person’s consent. Call 1-833-515-1234 for current guidance.
Dial 311 within Halton or call Halton Region at 905-825-6000. The Region’s Older Adults website and directory are also useful starting points.
The Ontario Caregiver Organization offers caregiver navigation, education, peer support, and a 24/7 helpline at 1-833-416-2273 (CARE). The helpline is not a crisis or counselling service.
The Alzheimer Society of Brant, Haldimand Norfolk, Hamilton Halton is a strong local starting point for education, counselling, programs, and care-partner support. Sudden or unexplained cognitive changes should also receive appropriate medical assessment.
Use Halton Region’s current Older Adults pages, town-specific “Need Help” pages, or 311. These services differ by municipality and contact details can change.
Start with the hospital discharge team and ask whether Ontario Health atHome or a local transition program is involved. Clarify what is arranged before leaving and identify any remaining practical or personal-care gaps.
If there is immediate danger, call 911. Ontario’s Seniors Safety Line at 1-866-299-1011 provides 24/7 support related to elder abuse and neglect. Legal or reporting obligations can depend on the setting and circumstances, so obtain appropriate professional guidance when needed.
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