Organizations looking to capitalize on youth mental health funding

Scott Hermann has battled through mental health and helps others through his role as youth advisory council at the Youth Wellness Hub.

He says there are a lot of young people who are underrepresented and struggling and feels things have gotten worse since the pandemic.

“This funding, getting here where there's again, no wait times, no pay for anything, like it's just here, is crucial,” said Hermann.

Application for the Youth Mental Health Fund opened earlier this week with successful applicants receiving half a million dollars every 12 months for up to four years.

“This is going to allow organizations like this to truly expand their offerings and to provide that support and reach more young people,” said Windsor-Tecumseh MP Irek Kusmierczyk.

The Youth Wellness Hub was established about 18 months ago and has seen over 3,000 youth during that time.

Nicole Sbrocca, CEO of the Windsor-Essex branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association, says agencies know where the gaps are in the system and are ready to plug them.

“Funding is always welcome here and we have a lot of agencies that are ready to go with ideas and proposals,” Sbrocca said.

Nadine Manroe-Wakerell feels young people need help in real time.

“Every door should be the right door for them,” said Manroe-Wakerell, Director of Clinical Practice for the Windsor-Essex Community Health Centres Teen Health site. “To be able to support youth in a timely way and to be able to increase awareness and to be able to do this collaboratively with partners would make a significant impact on our community.”

Zahra Abou Elhassan is social worker at the Youth Wellness Hub and feels virtual services could benefit from a boost in funding.

“Even though Covid 19 is over and that's when we used that mostly I would say that people still like to do virtual, whether they're in the county or close by because of confidentiality, privacy, maybe they can't drive, they don't want to take the bus.”

Not for profits and public post-secondary education institutions are eligible to apply for the Youth Mental Health Fund. Deadline for submission is Jan. 22.