Mental Health and Substance Use Services

At Village Family Health Team, we have staff social workers, who work in consultation with your family physician and our team psychiatrists to provide a range of mental health services. In addition to time-limited individual psychotherapy, our social workers offer group programming designed to help you develop skills to manage a mental health concern, as well as brief supportive services and access to community resources.

For information on how to find an individual therapist, low-cost and/or free therapy, and self-help resources see below:

Choosing a Therapist Guide + Private Therapist List
CBT Self-Help Handout

For online self-help options you can also visit:
Mood Gym: https://moodgym.anu.edu.au/welcome
ECouch: https://ecouch.anu.edu.au/welcome
Big White Wall: https://bigwhitewall.ca

For a list of free and low cost meditation groups please visit:
https://yogameditation.ca/

For free, confidential help navigating mental health and addiction resources and support in Ontario: https://www.connexontario.ca/

Some of the specific programs currently being offered at Village Family Health Team are listed below:

Facing Your Feelings: a 10-week DBT skills group

Facing Your Feelings is a 10-week psycho-educational group therapy program based on Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Training. The group is designed for individuals who want to learn to identify and cope better with difficult emotions, reduce unwanted emotions, manage stressful situations and improve relationships. This group will run at various times and dates throughout the year. Please speak with your health care provider for further details.

A Workshop for Better Sleep: Treating your Insomnia

Do you have difficulty falling sleep, or staying asleep? Do you have difficulty with daytime functioning or distress as a result of your sleep disturbances? Have you tried recommended sleep suggestions on the internet that do not work? In this two-part workshop you will learn about the three causes of chronic insomnia, the body’s sleep regulatory systems, the role of medication, and be introduced to behavioral techniques to improve your deep sleep quality, based on the evidence-based model ‘Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia.’

Part 1: Wednesday August 19^th, 2020, 12:00 – 1:00 pm.

Part 2: Wednesday August 26^th, 2020, 12:00 – 1:00 pm

This workshop will be held virtually through Microsoft Teams. You must attend part 1 in order to attend part 2. Space is limited. Please register by emailing Leticia at leticia.oba@villagefht.ca to receive the link to the workshop and workshop materials.

Resources to help you sleep:
CBTi online tool: https://mysleepwell.ca
Sleep Stimulus Control

Addiction Support Program

A social worker is available to provide support if you are struggling with substance use. The social worker will work with you to identify your goals, help you to take next steps, and refer you to needed resources and supports. The program is designed to be a supportive, non-judgmental, and harm-reduction approach that helps you to achieve your personal goals regarding your substance use. If you are interested, you can speak to your physician or another team member who can connect you to the social worker/addiction counselor.

Assessment Centre Update
March 30, 2020 12.30PM

Where is the closest Assessment Centre?
St. Joseph’s Health Centre
Sunnyside Building, 1st floor – enter through the Sunnyside Avenue entrance
Every day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., last patient to be registered at 8:30 p.m.
When Should I Go To an Assessment Centre?
In alignment with new Toronto Region COVID-19 Hospital guidelines, COVID-19 Assessment Centers will now focus on symptoms, and testing in the assessment centers will be limited to those who have mild symptoms and are at risk of transmitting COVID-19 to large groups of people, including:

Those who work in at-risk setting(i.e. hospitals, long-term care)
Those who reside in vulnerable stings (i.e. homeless, prison, retirement home)
Those who have been sent by Toronto Public Health (i.e. from areas with cluster outbreaks)

Everyone else, including those with mild symptoms who have returned from travel, does not need testing unless they get sick enough to go the Emergency Department.

When Should I Go To an Emergency Department?

If you have symptoms of coughing or upper respiratory illness AND severe symptoms of the following – regardless of severity – please go to your nearest emergency department:
• Shortness of breath
• Chest pain
• Weakness
• Lethargy
• Dizziness

Note: symptomatic infants less than six months old should always be assessed in the Emergency Department
What if I feel Ill but have not travelled?
Please self-monitor and if your symptoms worsen, call your family physician or visit an assessment centre. Please note that not all patients who come to the centre will be tested – only those who match the criteria.
What if I have travelled outside Canada and feel well?

If you do not have symptoms but have travelled outside of Canada in the last 14 days, please self- monitor. If you have travelled in the last 14 days and mild symptoms of upper respiratory illness but no fever, underlying health issues, are younger than 60 and able to access the hospital/assessment Center if symptoms worsen, please self-isolate.

Home-management-infographic for COVID-19.

Covid-19 - Anxiety handout

Covid-19 Resources

Visit Public Health for more information

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