Systems Outcomes

When several youth program providers attending a meeting shared that their participants were suffering from significant trauma but had nowhere to turn for age-appropriate help, a committee was set up by the settlement service provider to brainstorm ways of supporting youth better. Over the course of half a year, healthcare providers, trauma-informed counsellors from the local school, law enforcement officials, youth centre advocates, and settlement service providers came up with a three-prong strategy to shift some of their existing services. An awareness-raising campaign was developed for youth in neighbourhood schools, religious leaders from affected communities were provided with information on local mental health services, and partnerships were developed between police, schools and health care providers to address more serious situations. After a year, all stakeholders expressed that they were much better informed about the issues, more strongly networked, and able to de-escalate harmful situations much more quickly.