• Support
• Reassurance that surgeries can have positive outcomes
• Practical advice
• An opportunity to talk about personal fears and concerns with someone who has “been there, done that”
• Literature
• Answers to non-medical questions

Our Visiting Program supports and complements the service provided by the patient’s surgeon and the Enterostomal Therapist – a registered nurse who has received specialized training in ostomy care.

The Toronto ostomy community is made up of a group of people who have successfully transitioned to living with an ostomy. We swim, dance, work, travel and participate in activities just as we did before surgery. We believe that living with an ostomy does not define the individual.

I travel internationally as an advocate, educating people about ostomies. When I visit someone soon after their ostomy surgery, I want to help them to realize that this is not an end, but a new beginning.
- Di Bracken, IOA Past President, Patient, and Trained Visitor.

Our Visitors are members who have completed a specialized Volunteer Visitor Training Program under the auspices of the national organization, The United Ostomy Association of Canada Inc.

Ostomy Toronto helped me to get my life back on track after my ileostomy. I definitely recommend having a trained Visitor meet with the person having the surgery, and their spouse or family members.
— Lorne Aronson, Ostomy Toronto Member Patient, and trained Visitor

Wherever possible, Visitors are matched to the needs of the patient and their family based upon:
Type of surgery
Gender
Age
The need for surgery, which may result from:
• bowel or bladder cancer,
• Crohn’s disease,
• ulcerative colitis,
• diverticular disease,
• congenital disorders,
• physical trauma,
• extrophy, or
• Spina Bifida.

How to arrange a visit

There are various ways of connecting with a Visitor, pre and post ostomy surgery:
• In-hospital through your doctor, nurse or enterostomal therapist
• by phone: Toll Free 1-866-285-5948 Local 416-596-7718
• Email: info@ostomytoronto.com
• Facebook – Ostomy Toronto
• Website www.ostomytoronto.com

Our Visiting Program also includes visits for partners, family members, caregivers and friends. We also provide interpreters if required.

After my colostomy surgery, a trained visitor came to my house. Soon after, I became one myself, attending many sessions over the years. Help is always available at the Resource Centre where I volunteer weekly.
— Muriel Kinnear, Ostomy Toronto Member Patient, and trained Visitor

Operation of Ostomy Toronto’s Visiting Program

We offer our Visiting Program in the Greater Toronto Area. Visits can also be arranged in the regions of Aurora-Newmarket-Richmond Hill, and Barrie-Orillia.

Please call ahead to book your visit at 416-596-7718 or email us at info@ostomytoronto.com

You can also drop into our Resource Centre which is located in Suite #501, 344 Bloor Street W, just west of the corner of Bloor and Spadina.

Ostomy Toronto maintains a well stocked resource centre with books and videos open to the general public.

The resource centre provides a comfortable, private setting where visitors can read books, watch videos, and obtain more detailed information from our onsite volunteers.

For many, the beginning stages of adapting to a new ostomy can be challenging. Ostomy Toronto is here to support you through your transition. Meeting and learning from other people who have an ostomy can help ease many of the emotional and physical changes that accompany this new transition. Connecting with other individuals who have an ostomy can help eliminate the apprehension and possible stigma associated with the ostomy lifestyle.

As individuals who have successfully made the transition to the ostomy lifestyle, we want you to know that you are not alone!