One-stop clinic for mental health showing its value
Doubled in size, the downtown centre helped 1,600 people over last two years
The one-stop-shop approach of downtown Windsor’s Crisis and Mental Wellness Centre is proving a success.
“We’ve already seen a difference,” Dawn Nassr, an intake worker with the Canadian Mental Health Association’s local branch, said Friday at an open house for the centre.
“We’ve seen a difference, in terms of emergency room visits for a significant number of people have decreased because they can now come here and get mental health support instead of going to the hospital.”
About 1,600 people have been helped in the last two years as the centre doubled in size and added more services in what used to be called the Transitional Stability Centre.
The expanded Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare Crisis and Mental Wellness Centre at 744 Ouellette Ave. is a walk-in service for people who are 16 or older and experiencing mental health issues. In January, Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare began partnering with the Canadian Mental Health Association at the centre. A general psychiatric clinic was moved there from Windsor Regional Hospital, an injection clinic for people on long-term medication was added, and the CMHA located its earlyintervention programs there. The centre offers psychiatric assessments and consultations for individuals, group therapy sessions, referrals and support while people wait to get into the right service or program for them. Nassr said people who are depressed may not have the motivation to follow through, so workers stay involved and call the person every few weeks to see how they are doing and make sure they get connected to the services they need. “This prevents people from having to go all over the city to get what they need,” Nassr said. “They can come to one place and get everything.”
Nassr said she thought people wouldn’t want to be contacted, but it has turned out to be a very valuable service. “Some people would say, ‘This is like having a family member look out for me.’” Rob Moroz, the integrated director of community mental health, said it’s a unique spot that offers an alternative to the ER and is built around what the person needs, not what the health system already has in place. People don’t have to figure out who to call and they can return as many times as they like, he said. “The idea is you don’t need to apply or qualify — just show up,” Moroz said.
People from all walks of life come to the centre. Moroz said the biggest misconception is that the people coming are dangerous. He said people with mental illness are often victims of violence and not violent themselves. Although homeless people do come to the centre, the service is not just for them, he said. You can be referred by a doctor or just drop in. The Community Crisis Centre on Ouellette Avenue has a crisis hotline and defines a crisis as thoughts of suicide or selfharm, depression, anxiety, problems with drugs, alcohol and gambling, symptoms of mental illness such as hearing voices, and severe distress related to grief, illness, job loss and relationship issues. NEED HELP?
The 24/7 crisis hotline is 519973-4435.
The walk-in services at 744 Ouellette Ave. are available seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Crisis workers are also in the ER at the Windsor Regional Hospital’s Ouellette campus from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week, for people who are in danger of hurting themselves.