“CARF will recognize this accomplishment in its listing of organizations with accreditation” said President/CEO of CARF; Brian J. Boon.
Progressive Intercultural Community Services Society aka PICS has been issued a 3-year CARF (Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities) accreditation based on a recent 3-day long and comprehensive in-house survey by the CARF team. This certification showcases the diligence & consistent free support that PICS has been offering the community and is shaping the lives of the people served.
The CARF certification will extend through 2026. Independent Seniors’ housing, Employment Services, and Community Housing were amongst 9 program(s)/ Service(s) to which the accreditation applies. The report submitted contained the organization’s strengths as well as consultations & recommendations.
Key points of strength highlighted in the report are as follows:
1. PICS is led by a dynamic leadership team that consists of personnel who are dedicated to providing superior services to the persons served in their care.
2. Stakeholder feedback was universally positive.
3. Leadership team members are extremely accessible to line staff and clients/residents.
4. PICS is complimented for its dedication to cultural diversity and accessibility.
5. The leadership at PICS senior housing and the adult day program provides outstanding person-centered care.
6. Excellent person-centered care is provided in assisted living with a focus on independence.
7. Popular adult day program with a strong social model and respite services.
8. PICS has added an exciting new program called Seniors Engagement Through Technology (SETT) to educate and support seniors in the use of technology.
9. Effective marketing strategies, including outreach to various platforms.
10. Successful, one-of-a-kind program with a gender-sensitive approach.
11. PICS not only meets its service mandate but exceeds it.
12. Empowers clients with technical skills and a sense of community.
13. PICS truly embraces diversity by proactively hiring for the diverse language needs of clients.
14. The PICS youth program’s staff members truly have a passion for the work they do.
15. PICS is applauded for its community housing program for women.
16. Secure, organized, and confidential case files support service quality.
“We are proud of achieving this high level of accreditation. This would not have been possible without the guidance of our dedicated board members, the hard work and passion of our 271 multilingual staff, ongoing backing from our generous donors and members, and overwhelming support from the community. We started with $80 in 1987 and today we stand at $23+ million, zealously continuing to serve the community by providing tailor-made services to our clients, and fulfilling the vision and mission of our organization.” Shared CEO of PICS Society, Satbir Cheema.
Key points for Areas of Strength (for PICS Society) by CARF Surveyors
- PICS is led by a dynamic leadership team that consists of personnel who are dedicated to
providing superior services to the persons served in their care. Leadership members are strong
advocates for the clients and work right alongside the staff members to ensure that the persons
served receive the highest level of services. - Stakeholder feedback was universally positive. Comments such as ‘’I’ m honoured to be part of
the organization’’ and ‘’ ability to collaborate is outstanding’’ were heard. It is obvious that the
organization takes great pride in its ability to collaborate with partners in a way that produces
positive results for the clients/residents. - Leadership staff members are extremely accessible to line staff and clients/residents. The CEO
make a dedicated effort to touch base with all the staff members in the main office every day. - PICS is complimented for its dedication to cultural diversity and accessibility. It has voluntarily
undergone the work to become accessibility certified, which entails a comprehensive evaluation
of the buildings to ensure that they accessible for persons who use Wheelchairs and people with
disabilities. In addition, the organization has made a conscious effort to ensure that the staff
members are culturally diverse in all areas in order to serve the largest number of
clients/residents as possible in the language and culture that is most comfortable to them. - The leadership at PICS senior housing and the adult day program provides outstanding person-
centred care. Management is extremely approachable and has an open-door policy. The
leadership members are often directly involved in resident activities, including being visible at
mealtimes. They have developed a strong family environment within the programs that is
unique and captures the cultural elements of the persons served. Leadership has also developed
strong relations with external stakeholders, including key funders. These relationships have
helped to position the organization as a leader in healthcare and a unique organization in
providing culturally appropriate care. - PICS’s assisted living program provides excellent person-centred care to the residents. The
facility is well designed and well maintained. Residents are able to remain independent and
active while receiving the support services, they require with activities of daily living, medication
administration, emotional and psychological support, meal services, housekeeping, laundry,
social and recreational opportunities, and 24-hour emergency response. Residents highlighted
the strong family environment that has developed at PICS’s senior housing, including the
outstanding connection to culture. Residents also praised the meal services that provided and
commented that it is food ‘’like I would make. - The PICS’s adult day program is based on a social model and provide excellent opportunities for
person-centred care for clients. The program has an extensive waiting list and is well liked by
clients because of the friendly environment that is provided and the cultural aspect of the
program, including food services. Along with the social model, this program provides important
respite to family members, and there plans in place to expand the respite component of the
program in the future. The adult day program provides more than 5,000 units of service per year
and constantly operates at well over 100 percent of capacity. - PICS has added an exciting new program called Seniors Engagement Through Technology (SETT).
This program is operating at six locations across Canada, and the overall goal of the SETT
program is to educate and support seniors in use of technology to enhance social connections
and engagement within the community and their personal networks. Since 2020, this program
provided training more than 640 seniors. This is a leading-edge program that provides support
and social engagement to many seniors assists with specific cultural aspects that many seniors
face. PICS is applauded for developing and implementing this visionary type of program. - Employment program at PICS do a commended job incorporating aggressive marketing in their
outreach efforts. They are creative in their mission to reach target audience to recruit. Some of
these locations include construction sites, community centres, libraries, WorkBC centres, as well
as social media outreach that includes WhatsApp, Instagram, and Telegram. - PICS is one of the few organizations in the country to have received a contract for a recent and
one-of-kind program that has been much appreciated by recipients and professionals new to
Canada. Persons served called it a ‘’lifesaver. This is very successful program also provides
wraparound services for women and non-binary participants in a gender-sensitive manner,
which has been one of its major strengths. - PICS not only meets its service mandate, but exceeds it. This clearly indicates an organization
that works with admirable efficiencies and a focus on maximizing its service. Additionally,
external stakeholders were clear in stating that PICS is a fluid and dynamic organization with a
commendable dedication to all its stakeholders. - Persons served in the settlement and seniors 55+ programs could not speak enough about how
the programs and support of the staff members have empowered them by teaching them
technical skills, which they had never thought possible, and provided them with an integral
sense of community. Many of these persons served are appreciative of the multi-linguistic staff
members who provide services in several different dialects, and this is particularly helpful to
those persons served that have a language barrier. - PICS truly embrace diversity. When a need for services within a particular ethnic group is
identified in the community, PICS proactively hires staff who speak those dialects. The provision
of services in different dialects is helpful to persons in the settlement services to help
newcomers to Canada integrate into the Canadian society. Persons served in these programs
also praised the ease of obtaining assistance in a variety of different areas, which they said
would have otherwise been a challenge and almost impossible in navigating a system that was
new to them. - The PICS youth program’s staff members truly have a passion for the work they do. The clients
are satisfied with the services they receive and mentioned they are referring their friends to
PICS as well. - PICS is applauded for its community housing program for women. External stakeholders are
complimentary of the program services and staff. One mentioned that PICS may want to apply
to open long-term housing programs. This shows the stakeholders’ high level of satisfaction with
PICS program residents mentioned that the staff is very helpful and goes above and beyond in
providing services and supports and always available, and they all were very appreciative of the
staff members. Residents Complimented the staff members by name about their dedication to
helping, resourcefulness, compassion, professionalism, and responsiveness. - All case files reviewed in the youth employment and community housing program were
standardized, professionally organized, complete and secured in both electronic and hardcopy
formats by physical locks and passwords to protect confidentially. This supports the
organization’s communication with funding sources as well as teamwork among staff members
to provide the best service to the clients.