Supporting You on the Journey to Wellness

About this service

SOAHAC’s mental health services are offered in a manner that is culturally safe and sensitive to First Nations, Metis, and Inuit history and family life, and includes culture-based strategies and teachings and therapeutic western practices. We focus on helping people feel more confident and hopeful as they gain strength and knowledge, additional coping skills, and the capacity to continue making positive changes.

About the team

Mental Health and Addiction Services are provided by counsellors, family social workers, addictions counsellors, and other members of the integrated care teams such as harm reduction nurses and outreach workers. 

Accessing this service

We usually start with an initial consultation in person or over the phone (whatever is most comfortable for you) to discuss your health and wellness concerns and any safety concerns. These consultations are available to anyone, including other agencies and families with young children. If you are in crisis or need immediate help, we will link you to appropriate services inside or outside SOAHAC and emergency services if needed. Please note that not all mental health and addictions services are available at all SOAHAC sites.

SOAHAC’s mental health and addictions services include multiple teams and services. Here’s more information about them to help you understand each part of the care team.

Mental Health Counselling

Counselling services can be short term or long term, depending on your needs, and can include assessment, counselling and trauma therapy, crisis intervention and planning, client advocacy, and the development, implementation, and monitoring of wellness plans.

They can help support you in:

• Healing from and coping with abuse and trauma, including the impact of the loss of culture and identity
• Working through difficult life challenges 
• Managing anxiety, depression or other mental health conditions
• Learning to manage emotions, thoughts or behaviours
• Identifying personal strengths and resources to help you in your wellness journey.

Transitional Case Management

Transitional Case Managers (TCMs) provide short term support services if you are in transition between services or institutions such as hospitals, treatment centres, or the justice system. They ensure stability of care, relationships, and information between these different settings. TCM services may include short term counselling and support, crisis intervention and prevention, care and treatment planning, service coordination, collaboration with community services, referrals and advocacy. Please note that transitional case management is not available at all SOAHAC sites.

Family Social Worker

Family Social Workers provide a variety of social work services, but focus on assisting families in improving their wellness, achieving stability, and increasing resilience. This may include: care planning, assistance with housing, employment, or income needs, brief counselling, crisis intervention and prevention, referrals, forms assistance, and advocacy.

Addiction Recovery Services

Addictions Counsellors provide services for everyone, including individuals, family members and caregivers. We offer individual and group supports that promote healthy lifestyle options, including prevention, treatment, and aftercare, and we use multiple approaches, including abstinence and harm reduction, to help support you. Examples of our services include:

• Referrals and applications to treatment centres and healing lodges
• One-to-one counselling and wellness planning
• Help identifying group and family support options
• Group support such as: Wellness Support Circles based on White Bison Teachings; Traditional Healing and Educational Support Groups; Support Groups for Women; and Support Groups for Men. Please check with your SOAHAC location to see what groups are available.

Harm Reduction Services

Harm reduction means helping people stay safer while they still use drugs. This might mean teaching people about the different risks involved with using, or it might be providing them with a Naloxone kit to stop overdose. It could also be providing clean drug equipment to stop the spread of diseases such as HIV and Hepatitis C.

Harm reduction services are non-judgmental and focused on saving lives. Depending on which site you receive services at, you might see a Harm Reduction Outreach Worker, a Harm Reduction Nurse, or another member of the integrated care team to access these services. We also work with partners in different communities, and with other members of the mental health team and SOAHAC staff as appropriate. We will support your health and wellness whether or not you are ready to stop using drugs.

Please contact the site nearest you to learn which harm reduction services are available in your area. Here’s more information about the services in Owen Sound.

Crisis Support Lines

• Hope for Wellness Help Line: If you’re experiencing emotional distress and want to talk, contact the toll-free Hope for Wellness Help Line at 1-855-242-3310 or the online chat at hopeforwellness.ca open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  
• National Indian Residential School Crisis Line:  Emotional and crisis referral services can be accessed by calling the 24-hour national crisis line: 1-866-925-4419.
• Missing/Murdered Women and Girls:  24/7  emotional support can be accessed by calling 1-844-925-4419.
• Talk 4 Healing:  access this culturally grounded, fully confidential helpline for Indigenous women available in 14 languages all across Ontario: 1-855-554-HEAL.