NEWS RELEASE
CANADIAN MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION WATERLOO WELLINGTON
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The Canadian Mental Health Association Waterloo Wellington and Guelph-Wellington Women in Crisis are pleased to announce a new partnership. A CMHA WW mental health worker is spending one day a week at Marianne’s Place shelter to provide clinical support to women.
At the shelter, women can sign up for appointments or drop-in to see the mental health worker. The sessions provide an opportunity for women to speak confidentially about their mental health concerns with a seasoned clinician in the field. Having a mental health worker embedded in the shelter allows CMHA to meet clients where they are at and when they need the most support.
“Most women in the shelter are juggling several significant stressors already and navigating the mental health care system can be one of those stressors. The partnership allows for more seamless care by increasing ease of access to support at a very critical time,” says Michelle Hazlett, Mental Health Worker.
Mental health interventions are most effective when an individual feels safe, and although women may have attempted to access services in the past, their environment may have forced them to focus first and foremost on survival. Living in a space that feels safer, women are in a better place to begin working on their own mental health recovery. To add to this, having services available in the place of residence reduces stigma and normalizes mental health talk. There is also the additional benefit of working with some of the women who are also mothers. When a parent’s mental health improves, it affects the well-being of their children as well.
The partnership began at the end of February and has been well received by women in the shelter. It takes time to build trust and rapport; several women are checking in and learning more about programs while building a trusting therapeutic alliance with the mental health worker.
“It is important that the women can direct the pace of the service, they can either dip a toe in and meet for a brief chat or can dive right in and begin accessing counselling sessions and CMHA programs right away,” says Hazlett.
On May 5th CMHA WW will participate in the Shopper’s Run for Women. The new partnership between Guelph-Wellington Women in Crisis and CMHA WW will benefit from the funds raised at the run. To sign up or learn more visit: runforwomen.ca. We are extremely grateful for this funding opportunity for these kinds of innovative programming.
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