Accessibility Plan

Message from the CEO

PRI is committed to treating all people in a way that allows them to maintain their dignity and independence. 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 AODA.

Who We Are

Pine River Institute is committed to helping adolescents struggling with addictive behaviours, frequently combined with other mental health challenges. By fostering maturity in a family-centred program, we help young people get their lives, their relationships, and their futures back on track. We are dedicated to treatment excellence, research and evaluation, continuous improvement, and the exchange of knowledge. Pine River’s population is steeped in diversity – cultural, religious, economic, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, family formation and ability. We are committed to providing staff, students, and families a safe and inclusive environment in which to work, learn, and grow. This includes a focus on creating positive conditions which are embedded in PRI’s policies and procedures and comply with statutory requirements.

Accessibility Plan

Pine River Institute is committed to fulfilling our requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. This accessibility plan outlines the steps we are taking to ensure we play our role in making Ontario an accessible province. This plan is continually expanding and will be updated at least every 5 years as our strategy evolves.

Past Achievements to Remove and Prevent Barriers

This document includes a summary of the accessibility initiatives Pine River has completed.

Customer Service

Accessibility Requirement	Action	Time Frame for Completion	Status
Develop a policy that complies with accessibility standard for Customer Service	Establish policies governing the provision of service to persons with disabilities and post on website	Jan-12	Completed
Training	Train all staff and contractors on the requirements of accessibility standards (according to AODA and Human Rights Code)	Jan-12	Completed and ongoing
Notice of Availability of Documents	Post information regarding availability of documents on website via accessibility policy	Jan-12	Completed
Accessible Emergency Information	Provide customers with publicly available emergency information in an accessible way upon request. Provide customized emergency information to employee when needs become known	Jan-12	Completed
Feedback	Establish mechanism that allows clients to provide feedback on accessibility of provision of services	Jan-12	Completed

Integrated Standards

Information and Communications

Accessibility Requirement	Action	Time Frame for Completion	Status
Feedback process	Establish a process for receiving and responding to feedback regarding accessible customer service. Feedback form available on the website and by request	Jan-15	Completed
Accessible Information	Develop a policy for providing or arranging for the provision of accessible formats and communication supports, upon request	Jan-16	Completed
Website	Any new or refreshed website accessible to WCAG 2.0 Level AA standard. Verified by AChecker	Jan-21	Completed and ongoing

Employment Standard

Accessibility Requirement	Action	Time Frame for Completion	Status
Informing Employee of Supports	Inform employees of accommodation policies upon orienting them to organization. Employees to be notified of policy changes via staff meeting or email	Jan-16	Completed
Recruitment, Assessment and Selection Process	Notify the public about the availability of accommodation for job applicants during recruitment process. Inform applicants when they are invited to participate that accommodations are available. Notify successful applicant of organizations policies for accommodating employees with disabilities	Jan-16	Completed
Accessible Formats and Support	Provide employees who require accommodation with suitable accessible formats and communication support that is needed to perform their job	Jan-16	Completed

Design of Public Spaces

PRI will meet accessibility standards for the design of public spaces when building or making major modifications to public spaces within the parameters determined by our zoning commissions.

Transportation

PRI is committed to working collaboratively with individuals to address any transportation needs that may arise

Strategies and Actions

Our organization is undertaking the build of a new building that will be fully accessible. Completion of our building is slated for 2020.
We are committed to reviewing and undertaking opportunities for further accessibility improvements during times of renovations

for More Information

For more information on this accessibility plan, please contact Vaughan Dowie, CEO Pine River Institute at 416-955-1453 or vaughan@pineriverinstitute.com

Accessible formats of this document are available on request to hr@pineriverstitute.com or by calling 519-925-9225

Open the Accessibility Plan in word format HERE.