New model to treat mental illness
Youth Hub brings all services together in one place
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This article was published 24/10/2016 (3565 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
For more than 40 years, NorWest Co-op Community Health has been helping residents of the Inkster and Seven Oaks neighbourhoods.
With the broad range of health-related services they offer, the organization has given people the opportunity to talk about their challenges, significantly impacting their lives for the better.
According to executive director Nancy Heinrichs, they hear many stories about bullying, depression, addictions, relationship issues and even attempted suicide. These problems urged them to find a way to help youth in the community.
Looking at several models around the world, NorWest realized the best one would be a place that brought all services for youth together in a single location.
“Right now in Winnipeg, if you are youth and you need to access those services (primary care, addictions, mental health, vocational) you need to go to four different places,” Heinrichs said. “Many downtown, many that might be not that comfortable for you to walk into, and no one that you probably already know.”
Mental illness is affecting more youth in Canada than ever before. According to the Canadian Mental Health Association, 10 to 20 per cent are affected by a mental health disorder, and 3.2 million teenagers between the ages of 12 and 19 are at risk of developing depression.
Karla Atanacio, a NorWest youth ambassador for mental health and Sisler High School student, said she’s seen many young people struggle with their confidence and with the pressures of fitting into society’s standards of beauty and intelligence. She said many don’t have support or someone to talk to about their feelings.
“As kids grow older they bottle up these feelings because they don’t want to look weak or vulnerable in front of the people that they like. If they are lucky, they have close friends and relatives they can talk to, but most of the times, they tend to keep it to themselves,” she said.
“As these feelings bottle up, they tend to lead to anxiety, to depression and sometimes, suicide contemplation.”
The new Youth Hub at NorWest Co-op Community Health was built based on the preferences of local youths. The hub will help them make resumes, find jobs, and provide addiction support, counselling services, primary care, treatment for mental disorders, and other services which will be added when needed.
NorWest youth ambassador for mental health Alissa Darling said having these services available for youth will help them navigate through their challenges.
“We built it all on youth perspective, so it’s easy to relate, and it makes it more comfortable to come here. I think it will make a better change. It’s what (the youth) like, it’s not what we think they like. It’s helping us grow up, choosing our path and making our own decisions,” Darling said.
Heinrichs said other provinces such as British Columbia and Quebec have incorporated the same model in working with youth mental illness. She hopes to see more centres like this in Winnipeg.
“I’m hoping that people will see, will do research and will be able to prove that this is a place that youth really will get help sooner. We know that lots of youth have mental health issues and only find out when they are adults. We need to catch it earlier; we need to help them earlier. We need to prevent some of the problems from happening,” she said.
The Youth Hub will be open Monday to Friday from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the NorWest Co-op Community Health (103-61 Tyndall Ave.).
Youth Hub partners
After finding a model, NorWest Co-op Community Health went on the search for partners to help realize the project:
• NorWest Co-op Community Health’s existing staff;
• RBC Foundation;
• Manitoba Adolescent Treatment Centre (MATC); and
• Addictions Foundation Manitoba (AFM).
These partners will be working closely to provide youth with the services needed to ensure they live a happier life.
