Mental Wellness Services

The Mental Wellness team provides professional consultative expertise, and works in partnership with provincial partners, in the area of mental health programming in Alberta First Nation communities, including in the specific areas of Addictions and Indian Residential Schools Mental Health and Addictions as well as:

National Aboriginal Youth Suicide Prevention Strategy (NAYSPS)

As a program, NAYSPS targets resources that support a range of community-based solutions and activities that contribute to improved mental health and wellness among Aboriginal youth between the ages of 10 and 30 years, their families and communities.

National Native Alcohol and Drug Addiction Program (NNADAP)

Substance Use Prevention and Treatment programming provide a range of community-based prevention and treatment services and supports.

Community-based programming includes prevention, health promotion, early identification and intervention, referral, aftercare and follow-up services. These services are integrated with a network of addiction treatment centres which provide culturally-relevant inpatient, outpatient and day or evening programs for alcohol, solvents and other drug addictions.

NAYSPS

Youth Suicide Prevention

Increase awareness of the risk and symptoms of youth suicide and reduce the number of youth suicides and suicide attempts in our community.

Objectives:

Providing resources and information to youth, parents, youth workers and community members about youth suicide.
Building of partnerships with other agencies and professionals to support our youth suicide program.
Increasing resource and referral options for youth at risk of suicide.
Providing referrals for youth and parents when suicide is a risk.
Opening discussions about suicide and suicide prevention to open doors and avenues for access to resources.

NNADAP

The NNADAP community‐based program provides prevention, intervention and aftercare and follow‐up services in 500 First Nations and Inuit communities. Prevention strategies conducted by the program provide culturally appropriate programs to educate and create awareness about addictions and addictions‐ free lifestyles. As a result individuals, families, and communities learn and recognize high risk behaviours that can often lead to addictions.

Intervention strategies provide assessments and referrals to treatment centres and the preparation of clients for entry into residential treatment, or other rehabilitation treatment programs. Strategies also include the provision of short‐term counselling in crisis situations and out‐patient counselling services.

After care and follow‐up services also provide support to clients returning home to their community from a treatment centre. These services ensure that clients maintain a connection to treatment centres and receive ongoing client care.

Objectives

Support First Nations communities to reduce the incidence of alcohol and other substance abuse.
Build capacity to develop and deliver culturally appropriate community‐based addictions programs and services.
Increase awareness and understanding concerning alcohol, substance abuse and alternative healthier lifestyles, for example traditional values, and individual and family wellness values.
Strengthen relationships between community‐based programs and services and residential treatment.
Provide support to individuals and families post‐treatment.

IRS

Providing mental health and emotional support services for Indian Residential School students and their families before, during and after settlement processes. The Indian Residential Schools Resolution Health Support Program provides mental health and emotional support services to former Indian Residential School students and their families before, during and after their participation in Settlement Agreement processes, including the Common Experience Payments and the Independent Assessment Process, and those participating in Truth and Reconciliation Commission events and Commemoration activities.

Resolution Health Support Program Services are:

Safe
Confidential
Respectful, and non-judgmental

Program Eligibility

All former Indian Residential School students, regardless of the individual's status or place of residence within Canada, who attended an Indian Residential School listed in the 2006 Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement are eligible for the Resolution Health Support Program.

In recognition of the intergenerational impacts that the Indian Residential Schools had on families, Resolution Health Support Program services are also available to family members of former Indian Residential Schools students. The family of former students is defined as: Spouse or partner, those raised by or raised in the household of a former Indian Residential School student, and any relation who has experienced effects of intergenerational trauma associated with a family member's time at an Indian Residential School. Health Canada verifies eligibility of persons requesting services with Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, which holds data on students who attended those Indian Residential Schools that are part of the 2007 Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement.

Services Available Emotional Support Services are provided by local Aboriginal community members and are designed to help former students and their families safely address issues related to Indian Residential Schools as well as the disclosure of abuse during the Settlement Agreement process.

An aboriginal mental health worker will listen, talk and guide former students and their family members through all phases of the Settlement Agreement process. Cultural Support Cultural supports are provided by local Aboriginal organizations who coordinate the services of Elders and/or traditional healers. Cultural supports seek to assist students and their families to safely address issues related to Indian Residential Schools as well as the disclosure of abuse during the Settlement Agreement process.

Specific services are determined by the needs of the individual and include dialogue, ceremonies, prayers, or traditional healing.

Objectives:

Providing mental health and emotional support to survivors and their families.
Make referrals for mental health crisis related to the residential school experience.

Activities:

Land based activities
Cultural supports - ceremonies, prayers, traditional healing
Crisis intervention training and supports
Indigenous Ways of Knowing book club
Annual Healing and Wellness Conference
Orange T-Shirt Day programming Facilitator/Sponsor
Distribution of resource materials
Encouraging support groups.
Mental health referrals for individuals and families.

Counselling

Counselling Support Services

As an integral part of NHBS Health Centre, and funded by the First Nations Inuit Health branch, our programs are designed to respond and meet the needs of those affected by mental health and addictions issues.

We are a multidisciplinary group of social workers, mental health and addictions counsellors with years of supervised clinical experience.

The Mental Health and Addictions Program includes the Assault Care and Treatment program, Outpatient Withdrawal Services, as well as long-term and crisis counselling services.

These services are offered on a voluntary basis. Our services are free and confidential.

What can I expect from counselling?

Recognizing that it takes courage and determination to seek help, you will be treated in a respectful manner by a skilled team of professional counsellors.

These services are offered on a voluntary basis.

All services offered:

Our services are based on mental health and addictions best practices and include:

Mental Health & Addiction Counselling
Crisis Counselling via Emergency Department
Visiting Consulting Psychiatrist Clinic
Problem Gambling Counselling
Needle Exchange Program
Treatment Referral
Case Management
Outpatient Withdrawal Services
Assault Care and Treatment Counselling

Confidentiality

Our staff respects a client’s right to privacy and confidentiality. A staff member will reveal information only when authorized by the client and/or when legally required to do so. There are three main exceptions to confidentiality:

When a client threatens harm to self or others.
When the client is involved in maltreatment or neglect of a child under 16.
When a case file or counsellor is subpoenaed.

Prior to disclosure the counsellor will have the client provide written or verbal consent.

A client may withdraw consent at any time.

Populations served

16 years of age or older and their families for mental health
Youths 12 years of age or older for addictions services
All ages for psychiatric consultations
All ages for ACT counselling
All ages for crisis services

We encourage participation of partners and family members in the counselling process.

Client responsibilities

Counselling is a working relationship based on mutual respect. We ask that clients be polite to staff and come to sessions prepared to work on their issues.
We ask you to arrive clean and sober for counselling sessions.
If you are unable to come to a scheduled appointment, please phone us to let us know, preferably 24 hours in advance.

Client Satisfaction

In order to ensure that our patients have received the best possible service, we encourage you provide feedback by completing our client experience survey. A paper copy can be obtained from any NHBS staff member.

If you wish to talk confidentially with someone at Mental Health & Addiction services about your experiences, we encourage you to contact us at 780.697.3900