About
QualiCare
Aya is a dedicated community advocate with Qualicare, a trusted provider of personalized home care services for older adults and families. Through a compassionate, client centered approach, Aya works closely with seniors, caregivers, and community partners to help individuals access the support they need to age safely and comfortably at home.
At Wellbridge Center, we are proud to collaborate with Aya and the Qualicare team to raise awareness of available care options, support caregivers, and connect older adults with valuable resources that enhance quality of life and independence.
About Rightiatrics™ founded by Kawther Jelassi,
About Coco
Kawther “CoCo” Jelassi is an Interior Architect, Residential Transition Specialist, Certified Aging in Place Specialist and founder of Rightiatrics™.
With more than 20 years of experience in interior architecture and residential environments, her work has evolved to focus on an often-overlooked part of aging and care-giving: the impact of the physical environment.
Through Rightiatrics™, her Through Their Eyes awareness initiative, and her book Through Their Eyes, Kawther helps families, caregivers, and professionals better understand how changes in vision, perception, mobility, and cognition can affect the way an older adult experiences their home.(specially for people who has dementia)
Her approach focuses on practical environmental changes from lighting and contrast to layout and way finding that can help reduce risks while supporting dignity, confidence, and independence.
MY CAREGIVER STORY
My connection to care-giving is not only professional. It is deeply personal.
Thirteen years ago, my mother was diagnosed with a brain tumour. After undergoing surgery, she never truly recovered. She lost approximately 85% of the use of her body and became almost completely dependent on others for every aspect of her daily life.
Suddenly, we were no longer simply her family. We became her caregivers.
One of the first things we had to do was transform our living room into a space where she could receive the level of care she needed. What had once been the heart of our family home became almost like a nursing room, with her needs determining how the entire space functioned.
That experience changed my understanding of what a home really means.
As an Interior Architect, I had always thought about how people move through and experience spaces. But caring for my mother taught me that when someone’s physical or cognitive abilities change, the environment around them has to change too.
It also taught me how demanding care-giving can be. You are constantly thinking about the person you love their comfort, safety, dignity, and needs, while adapting your own life around a reality you never expected.
Years later, I began looking at my professional work through a different lens. I became increasingly interested in how aging, mobility, vision, perception, and cognitive changes affect the way people experience their surroundings.
That personal and professional journey became part of the foundation for my work with Rightiatrics™ and Through Their Eyes.
Today, when I speak with caregivers and families, I understand that adapting a home is about much more than design. Sometimes, a living room becomes a care space. Sometimes furniture has to move because a pathway is no longer safe. Sometimes better lighting, stronger contrast, or a simpler layout can make an everyday task easier.
My experience taught me that we cannot always change what is happening to someone we love. But we can look at the environment surrounding them and ask:
What can we change here to make today a little safer, easier, and more dignified?
That question continues to guide my work today.
A MESSAGE FOR CAREGIVERS
“Care-giving taught me that we cannot always change what is happening to someone we love, but we can change the environment around them. Sometimes, one thoughtful change can bring a little more safety, comfort, and dignity to their day.”