2025 - 2026
Northwood Annual Report
Contents
Stronger Together
This past year, we saw what’s possible when care, community, and connection come together.
Across Northwood, our teams supported individuals and families with compassion, dignity, and purpose while continuing to grow and strengthen the services our communities rely on every day. From expanding modern long-term care to advancing innovation, research, and community-based programs, each step forward has been shaped by the people who make this work possible.
Our staff, volunteers, partners, and supporters are at the heart of everything we do. Together, you help create spaces where people feel safe, valued, and connected where care goes beyond services and becomes part of everyday life.
As the needs of our communities continue to grow, so does our commitment to meeting them. This year’s progress is a reflection of what we can achieve together, and a reminder that the future of care will continue to be built through partnership, compassion, and shared purpose.
Message from our CEO
A Legacy of Care and Community
Changing Lives for Generations to Come
Some gifts make an immediate difference. Others continue changing lives for generations.
This year, the Christina & Hedley G. Ivany Charitable Foundation made an extraordinary commitment to the future of Northwood by establishing an annual legacy gift of $62,500 in perpetuity to support our Seeds of Success programming.
Announced during a special celebration on Northwood's Halifax Campus, this enduring commitment will provide ongoing support for initiatives that strengthen emotional well-being, foster meaningful social connection, and enhance mental health for people living in long-term care. It is an investment in the moments that bring comfort, purpose, joy, and belonging to everyday life, and a recognition that emotional wellness is an essential part of quality care.
For the Ivany family, this commitment is deeply personal.
Their connection to Northwood stretches back to the organization's earliest days, when Hedley G. Ivany worked alongside founder Ed Roach to help build an organization rooted in dignity, inclusion, and community. Together, they shared a vision that every person deserves the opportunity to live life with purpose and respect.
That vision became even more meaningful when Hedley's daughter became the first young person to live in care at Northwood Halifax while receiving support for mental illness. Experiencing Northwood's care firsthand strengthened the family's connection to our mission and reinforced their belief in the importance of compassionate, person-centred care.
The Foundation has been a steadfast supporter of Northwood since 2009. Their generosity helped make possible the creation of Christina & Hedley Ivany Place in Bedford, and this latest commitment continues that remarkable legacy.
By establishing this gift in perpetuity, the Christina & Hedley G. Ivany Charitable Foundation has ensured that Seeds of Success will continue to enrich lives for generations to come. It is a legacy of compassion, hope, and unwavering belief in the power of community.
Northwood is profoundly grateful for the Foundation's enduring partnership and their continued investment in helping people live more, every day.
Message from our Board Chair
On behalf of the Board of Governors, I am pleased to present this year’s Annual Report for Northwood.
This past year has been one of meaningful progress, thoughtful growth, and continued commitment to the people we serve. Across a rapidly changing health and social care landscape in Nova Scotia, Northwood has remained grounded in its mission to enhance quality of life for older adults and to support the dedicated team members who make that possible every day.
We also marked the beginning of an important new chapter in long-term care with the groundbreaking of two new campuses; Fall River and Akoma. These developments represent more than new buildings. They reflect our belief in creating environments that support dignity, belonging, and quality of life for residents, families, and staff for generations to come.
Another significant milestone this year was the successful integration of the Antigonish and Victoria County home care agencies into the Northwood team. Northwood provided administrative and organizational support for these agencies for a number of years, and this transition brings greater efficiency and harmonization to the work we have been doing together. This expansion strengthens our ability to provide coordinated, community-based care and reflects our ongoing commitment to building a more connected and responsive system of care across the region.
A point of pride this year was the graduation of our first cohort from the Northwood Career College Continuing Care Assistant program. These graduates represent the future of care in our province and demonstrate the value of investing in education and pathways that strengthen the care workforce.
We were also pleased to welcome our research and data team, whose work is already contributing to stronger insight, better decision making, and continuous improvement across the organization. Their presence strengthens Northwood’s ability to evolve in a thoughtful and evidence informed way.
This year has also brought challenges. The broader context of an aging population in Nova Scotia, combined with evolving funding models and increasing system pressures, continues to place demands on the sector. Northwood, like many organizations, must navigate these realities with care, discipline, and resilience.
Through it all, what remains constant is our focus on people. Whether it is those who call Northwood home, those we support in the community, or the team members who deliver care with compassion and professionalism, people remain at the center of every decision we make.
We are grateful for the leadership and dedication of our executive team and all staff across the organization who continue to guide Northwood forward with clarity, purpose, and commitment.
Looking ahead, the Board remains focused on supporting the organization in delivering on its mission and vision through continued modernization and strengthening of our systems, services, and infrastructure. These efforts are essential to ensuring we are well positioned to meet the needs of today while preparing thoughtfully for the future.
On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank our residents, clients, families, staff, volunteers, and partners for their trust and continued support.
Gavin Stuttard, Board Chair
Our Year in Numbers
Care & Communities
Our Team
Research
Impact in Action
Supporting independence, dignity, and quality of life every day.
Building smarter systems to strengthen care for the future.
Turning knowledge into better care and better outcomes.
Creating modern spaces where people can truly feel at home.
Creating moments of connection across generations and communities.
Community comes together to honour beloved volunteer.
The Northwood Continuum of Care
Supporting Nova Scotians Through Every Stage of Care
As Nova Scotia’s population ages, the need for connected, accessible, and person-centred care continues to grow.
Northwood supports individuals and families across the full continuum of care - from independent living at home to long-term care communities-helping people remain safe, connected, and supported as their needs evolve over time.
Through partnerships with government, healthcare, academic, and community organizations, Northwood continues to play an important role in strengthening care across the province today and for the future.
Living Independently
Helping people stay safe, supported, and connected at home
This year, home care and Northwood InTouch, our personal response service with wearables and fall detection, continued helping Nova Scotians remain safely in their own homes. Demand for ageing-at-home support keeps growing, and we are working to lead the way, watching emerging trends closely and evolving how we deliver care in response.
Staying Connected
Reducing isolation through community, wellness, and belonging
Isolation remains one of the most pressing challenges of ageing. This year, our community wellness, cognitive wellness, and caregiver support programs continued bringing people together across generations through music, recreation, and respite. The need for connection keeps growing, and these programs remain open to the wider community.
Supportive Living
Creating comfortable, affordable communities where people can thrive
Our retirement living and affordable housing communities continued offering comfortable, genuinely affordable places to live the next chapter, with care close at hand if and when needed. As affordability pressures grow across the province, the importance of these communities does too.
Long-Term Care
Delivering compassionate care in home-like communities
Long-term care is where Northwood began over sixty years ago. This year, our four long-term care campuses continued delivering steady, day-by-day care while two new ones advanced through development. These projects represent a meaningful investment in the future of long-term care across the province.
Advancing the Future of Care
Strengthening care through innovation, research, and learning
This year, Northwood supported 21 research enquiries and 6 active projects spanning dementia care, fracture prevention, and workforce wellbeing. Our InTouch wearables and monitoring tools fed real user experience back into how we improve care at home. Each project, partnership, and lesson learned this year feeds directly into stronger care tomorrow.
Together, these services form a connected system of care supporting Nova Scotians through every stage of life.
The need for care in our communities is growing, and so is the opportunity to build something better.
In the year ahead, Northwood is not standing still. We are moving forward with purpose and momentum: modernizing long-term care, redesigning homecare, expanding supports that help people live independently, and investing in the people, partnerships, and innovation that will shape the future of care in Nova Scotia.
We are building new spaces designed for dignity, connection, and quality of life. We are strengthening our workforce through recruitment, education, and international partnerships to help meet rising demand across the province. Through Northwood Career College, workforce development initiatives, and continued investment in employee wellbeing, we are helping prepare the next generation of caregivers and care professionals.
At the same time, we continue to advance research, technology, and data-informed approaches that improve care experiences and support better outcomes for residents, clients, families, and staff.
This is a pivotal moment. What we build now will define how people experience care across Nova Scotia for years to come.
But this work cannot be done alone.
It will take a community - partners, supporters, volunteers, and champions - coming together with a shared belief that everyone deserves to live with dignity, connection, and purpose.
With your help, we have the opportunity to create something truly meaningful.
