N.S. youth get provincewide support with 8 integrated service sites

Eight new mental health and social services are getting ready to open in Nova Scotia. CTV News got a preview of the first one open in Amherst.

Inside 13 West Pleasant St. in Amherst, N.S., each wall, room and piece of decor has been carefully constructed to fill a very specific need: a safe space for youth across Cumberland County.

Anchor Youth Space Cumberland is the first of eight Integrated Youth Services (IYS) sites to open across the province with a focus on health and social services under one roof.

“The idea for this space is that youth will be able to come and access services on a walk-in basis, so no referrals required and they can come for a whole host of supports whether it’s mental health supports, addictions, housing needs,” said YMCA of Cumberland CEO Trina Clarke.

On top of having immediate access to clinicians or outreach workers, the space will be filled with different programing and even comfy couches for people aged 12-to-25 years old.

Clarke says it’s a hub that ensures youths in the community can get help in their backyard without having to leave for support.

“The reality is sometimes there’s a waitlist and the youth, if they’re going through something traumatic, having negative thoughts and need somebody, they need somebody now and so we’re not necessarily going to be able to provide the A-to-Z of supports that that youth needs, but we can start them on that journey,” she said.

Integrated Youth Services is a part of the province‘s plan to improve health care across Nova Scotia.

Over the next several years, the government is spending $8.4 million to set up eight different sites with another $10 million being added from philanthropic partners.

Several community partners have joined in to help provide wrap-around services in Amherst, including Maggie’s Place, Autism Nova Scotia and Eating Disorders Nova Scotia.

The “backbone organization” is the IWK Children’s Hospital in Halifax.

“In Nova Scotia we did a lot of work with youth and families in terms of ‘What do you need, what are you looking for?’ and a lot of the comments were, ‘We need self-referral. We need to be able to reach out and get the help we need when we need it,’” explained IWK chief of psychiatry Dr. Alexa Bagnell.

She says while Nova Scotia does have one line where people can self-refer, it still includes a wait.

“Integrated Youth Services are different because they’re in your community, you can walk in, talk with someone that day, get connected to youth supports, things that you’re interested in, things that might help you either in school or employment. It’s kind of that one-stop shopping idea for young people,” she said.

Anchor Youth Space Cumberland is the first and only site open in Nova Scotia, but with seven more to come, Bagnell says they will all work together and support each other across the province.

“The most significant [brain] development is between 12 and 25 [years old] and the Integrated Youth Services are actually specifically targeting that age group – the 12-to-25 year olds – and really helping them when their brains are developing the most and the fastest and when some of their brains are the most vulnerable and really trying to make a difference in that brain.”

The other sites are planned for Bridgewater, Eskasoni, two in Halifax, New Glasgow, Sydney and Yarmouth.

“One of the things we know in our province is youth in rural areas can sometimes have troubles accessing supports,” said Bagnell. “Sometimes they might need more higher levels of support in terms of coming into an inpatient unit or emergency visit, but then going back home to their home community and they might not have all the supports they need in that community.

“They might not have support around connecting with a youth group or getting help around attending school or getting a part time job or housing, so we know that having a one-stop shop where kids, where youth can come and get that help and support really makes a difference in their outcome.”

Organizers say the hope is youths feel they have community-wide support and are valued across the province.

“We want the youth to know that the community has their back and that whatever they need, they can get it here. We’re going to make sure that they can get it here,” said Clarke. “I know there’s eight, but I think every community deserves to have an anchor. All youth deserve to have an anchor.”

Services for youth at the Anchor Youth Space Cumberland are completely free for youth to access and available immediately.

For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page