The Chronicle Herald (Provincial)
Mom praises IWK youth mental health program
Family, timely response emphasized
There are never any quick and easy solutions when your child faces a mental health challenge.
“Mental health is an ongoing thing,” said a Halifax mother whom we’ll call Anna because she wanted to protect her children’s privacy.
But she said it can be crucial for a family to find support in the health system as fast as possible when problems first arise.
“Children who are in distress, in mental health distress, that’s one of the more frightening things that happens in parenting,” Anna said in a recent interview. “It’s out of your control in a lot of ways if you’re someone whose own background doesn’t include mental health challenges.”
She credited a program at the IWK Health Centre for making a huge difference for her family in not only responding quickly to their call for help but continuing to support them through the ongoing process of helping their children.
“As a parent I was very frightened for the health of my kid,” said Anna, who received a callback from the Choice and Partnership Approach program in just a few weeks.
“I was very frightened for what might be going wrong, what does early intervention look like, I didn’t even understand what was happening and they were able to help me out right away.”
She said the first contact is a phone call of about 45 minutes to an hour when it’s decided if the program is a good fit for the family and exactly where in the system they belong.
CHOICE AND PARTNERSHIP
The Choice and Partnership Approach mental health program was first implemented at the IWK in 2012, spearheaded by clinical psychologist Dr. Sharon Clark.
The program, which was created by British child psychologist Ann York, aims to significantly shorten wait times and make the family the centre of the child’s mental health treatment.
Before CAPA, Clark said a family could wait up to 18 months for the first treatment contact.
“(That’s) way too long if you’re calling for a sevenyear-old and waiting till they turn eight, so we knew we had to do things differently,” Clark said in a recent interview.
The usual wait time now for the first response is within a month, although the COVID-19 pandemic has stretched that wait to about three months.
“It’s a model of care that thinks a lot about how we provide services to youth and families in a way that really focuses on what’s important to them,” Clark said.
“It puts them in the centre of care and then we pull in the parts and pieces that are important in order to be able to meet their mental health treatment goals.”
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
Anna said CAPA has “absolutely” been effective for her family.
“It takes away the idea that the physician, psychologist or social worker has all the answers,” she said. “What it becomes is a group of people sitting together - parents, kids and the clinical people - saying what works for your family? What are your resources? How exhausted are you, do you guys need a break? Do you need family counselling in addition to regular counselling?”
The IWK is hosting an international conference this week that includes Ann York from the U.K., along with clinicians and families from countries such as Australia, Norway, New Zealand and Ireland.
“I’m excited to learn from some of the ... things that are happening around the world and really being innovative and sharing what we’re doing here locally in Halifax at the IWK but also provincially,” Clark said.
“It’s a way that we can ensure that we’re doing the best that we can, pause and reflect on what we’re doing and where are the opportunities to get better and grow together at an international level.”
Anna said the success of a program such as CAPA in Nova Scotia — where long wait times still afflict many health services — should be celebrated.
“I think it’s rare and incredible that it’s happening in the province,” she said. "I just feel like I have every support in place for me. Which is all I can ask for. "