Service Pathways to Care

The Aligned and Integrated Model  (AIM) for school mental health and well- being provides and excellent community framework of integrated care for mental health promotion and intervention that clarifies the roles of education and other community service providers. The first tier of services are the foundational elements for mentally healthy school environments.   Our leadership teams are invested in developing the organizational conditions necessary for student well-being. It is the educators’ role to welcome our students engaging them in learning and creating a sense of connection and belonging where all students are included. Our educators are focused on knowing our learners and understanding their needs to ensure they have the supports they need.  Student well-being is promoted through all aspects of the curriculum and a recognition of the unique learning styles of all our learners. We work closely with our community partners to ensure there are clear service pathways to and from care and that our students receive the best service option available within the community.

School Mental Health Ontario is a provincial implementation support team designed to help Ontario school boards promote student mental health and well-being. Operating within the Open Minds Healthy Minds: Comprehensive Mental Health and Addictions Strategy, and working with the Ministry of Education, School Mental Health Ontario provides mental health leadership, resources and coaching support. Using an implementation science framework school boards receive resources and support in approaching student well-being in a systematic and intentional pathway forward that is evidenced–based.

For more information visit: https://smh-assist.ca/

Our Valued Community Partners

The Hands Family Help Network is an accredited organization dedicated to improving the life experiences of families, children, youth, and adults with a developmental disability, who need support and guidance. Through our services in mental health, autism, developmental disabilities, and the pre-natal to six years, Hands serves more than 12,000 families across Parry Sound, Nipissing, Muskoka, North Bay and Northern Ontario.

The NNDSB works closely with Hands in developing clear and responsive pathways to service and partners on several mental health promotion activities.

For more information visit: http://www.thefamilyhelpnetwork.ca

The Community Counselling Centre of Nipissing offers brief counselling services to youth for select schools in North Bay, West Nipissing and Mattawa. They specialize in drug and addictions services.

For more information visit:  http://www.cccnip.com/services/

The unit has 6 bedrooms. The unit offers both unplanned crisis and planned services to children and adolescents under the age of 18 with serious mental health problems living in Nipissing, Parry Sound, South Cochrane, and Muskoka Districts.

Inpatient Services

Most people come to the unit through hospital emergency services.  They come because of worries about their safety. Problems that lead to admission include worries about possible suicide, losing touch with what’s real, or being aggressive to the point that someone could get seriously hurt.

After coming to the unit staff work with you to understand if you are at risk.  If you are, the staff will work with you to try to reduce the risk and its causes, until you are ready to go back home. Crisis services are usually very brief, usually 72 hours.

Referrals for planned non-crisis assessment and treatment originate with community providers and require scheduling a preadmission session which engages the child/adolescent and family as well as referral sources in informed discussion. A typical length of stay for planned services is 2 to 6 weeks.

The Eating Disorders Program is a community-based outpatient assessment and treatment program for people (along with their families) suffering from anorexia nervosa, bulimia, binge eating disorder and mixed syndromes. Assessment and treatment are provided within a multidisciplinary team context.

North Bay Regional Health Centre Website

The Alliance Centre offers bilingual mental health and addiction counselling services for individuals aged 16 years and older, residing in West Nipissing.  Services include:

Mental Health Counselling
This program offers counselling services which are individually tailored and focus on assisting the person to identify and reduce symptoms of distress, increase his/her ability to manage symptoms of illness, improve daily functioning and reduce the possibility of self-harm.

Substance Abuse/Addictions Assessment and Treatment
Substance abuse services include assessment, community treatment, case management and referral to external services such as withdrawal management services and residential treatment. Community treatment includes counselling services for individuals and family members who feel they are affected by someone's substance use.

Youth Addiction Services provides counselling for youth who are misusing substances.  Counselling is offered with a Harm Reduction approach, promoting options that help minimize the risk of substance use.  Support is also offered to youth who are impacted by someone else’s use.  Common support offered includes: moderation, abstinence, alternative coping, self-exploration, advocacy and connection to community supports and resources.  Service may include: individual support, groups, outreach in schools and community.  Case Management support is also available for youth in Muskoka for anyone up to and including 25 years of age. Please note that the counsellors also support Parry Sound and Almaguin Highlands Secondary schools.

For more information visit: The Canadian Mental Health Association

The NNDSB has three dedicated staff devoted to supporting students with an Indigenous focus. We have 2 Child Development Counsellors that work directly in our schools with a focus on priority schools.  In addition, our Indigenous Family Outreach Worker responds to the unique needs of families and students that have transitioned to the North Bay area for employment and school from northern remote communities.

Indigenous Service Partners:

North Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre

North Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre offers a variety of programs for children, youth and their families. They also provide service directly in our schools in the Nipissing areas. Visit: http://www.nbifc.org/

The North Bay Parry Sound District Healthy Unit works with many community partners throughout our district to support health assessment, planning, delivery, management and evaluation of our programs and services to fulfill our local community needs. They provide resources to teachers and other professionals working with school-aged students. In addition, they have provided a dedicated staff that work directly in our schools promoting the Healthy Schools framework and mental heath promotion activities.

For more information visit:  http://www.myhealthunit.ca/en/index.asp