Community Partnership Award: The Gordon and Ruth Gooder Charitable Foundation
January 31, 2024
Grieving Families Remember Mom
April 24, 2024
The West Toronto Youth Wellness Hub provides young people with an inclusive, welcoming space where they can walk-in and access a full range of Integrated Youth Services (IYS). These services include mental health and substance use health supports, primary health care and social services, all while creating connections through recreational, skill development and well-being programs.
Yorktown Family Services West Toronto Youth Wellness Hub partners include:
- Access Alliance Children’s Aid Society Toronto
- Garrison Creek- Family Health Team
- Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital
- Humber River Health
- Jane and Finch Centre
- Macaulay Child Development Centre
- Unison Health and Community Services
We are very grateful for Yorktown and the active and collaborative West Toronto Youth Wellness Hub community partners that have made the development of this Youth Wellness Hub possible and are essential for meeting the needs of youth in the community. We are thrilled to welcome the West Toronto Youth Wellness Hub into the YWHO network.
–Maria Talotta, Director, Strategy and Transformation, Youth Wellness Hubs Ontario
You Have Come to the Right Place: Oliver’s Story
Yorktown has nimbly been responding to the needs of our communities for over 30 years with innovative programs provided free of charge. Yorktown launched the West Toronto Youth Hub, an integrated care, interdisciplinary, multiorganizational, and multiservice stepped care hub in 2018 in response to the evolving needs of the community.
In April 2022, in recognition of our effective service delivery, Yorktown’s West Toronto Youth Hub was designated a Youth Wellness Hubs Ontario (YWHO) site. Rebranded as the West Toronto Youth Wellness Hub, we continue to offer low-barrier access to a wide range of high-quality, responsive services for youth aged 12 to 29 that Yorktown is renowned for.
Services at the West Toronto Youth Wellness Hub are coordinated through the Care Navigators, who assist youth and young adults to promptly connect to all the programs and services they require. Care Navigators provide triage for services, including Rapid Access Therapy. In collaboration with the client, the Care Navigator facilitates a seamless referral by connecting the client with the appropriate service provider or program, ensuring a smooth transition to the next phase of their care journey. Referrals are made with careful consideration of the client’s preferences, ensuring that they receive the support best aligned with their goals and requirements.
Oliver*, 14 years old, had suffered a severe traumatic event, and upon discharge from hospital, he was referred to Yorktown’s Walk-in Rapid Access Therapy. When Oliver arrived at the West Toronto Youth Wellness Hub with his mother, Joyce*, he was extremely apprehensive about seeing a therapist.
The Care Navigator could see that Oliver was reluctant to engage, and recognized the need for intervention. Assessing the situation, the Care Navigator requested a private conversation with Oliver who agreed. In the office, Oliver shared that he had no idea what was happening. He was feeling distraught and betrayed by his caregivers. The Care Navigator provided reassurance to Oliver and explained the purpose of Rapid Access Therapy—which is to provide immediate access to mental health counselling, and emphasized his autonomy in the decision-making process. The Care Navigator also highlighted the potential benefits of participating in therapy for Oliver; the opportunity to explore thoughts, feelings, and worries without judgement as well as develop coping strategies for different situations. As they spoke, Oliver began to feel more at ease and decided to give therapy a try.
The Care Navigator provided a warm transfer to the Therapist at the Walk-in Rapid Access. Oliver was surprised at how helpful the session was, and his journey towards healing and growth began from there. Oliver’s Therapist arranged for Oliver to have a virtual assessment through Yorktown’s Urban Tele-mental Health program that runs in partnership with The Hospital for Sick Children. This virtual program greatly reduces wait times for psychiatric assessment, which can take months and sometimes more than a year; Oliver had his assessment with the psychiatrist in just two weeks.
Several weeks after his first session at Yorktown’s Rapid Access Therapy, Oliver returned to the walk-in with the purpose of connecting a friend that he felt would benefit from the mental health counselling service.
At his first session, Oliver was placed on the waitlist for ongoing counselling and continues to access Rapid Access Therapy whenever he needs support.
Yorktown Family Services fundraises for at least three full-time therapists every year to address the gap in mental health services. Please help youth and young adults to bring positive change to their lives by making a donation to Yorktown at https://yorktownfamilyservices.com/donate/.
*Name and some details have been changed to protect the client’s privacy.
Rainbow West: Based at the West Toronto Youth Wellness Hub Program
In 2022, the city of Toronto designated funds in support of Yorktown’s Rainbow West program to ensure it was sustained and continues to respond to the gap in services available for 2SLGBTQ+ youth in West Toronto. The program is designed for youth and young adults ages 12-29 to access mental health supports that are dedicated to responding to their unique needs. Participants can engage in drop-in programming, one-to-one mental health services, and youth-led initiatives and help inform program activities. Thanks to the City of Toronto, 2SLGBTQ+ youth have an inclusive, safe, and welcoming environment to access programs and services in West Toronto!