MacKids

TOTAL FUNDS RECEIVED TO DATE

$842,453

181

Assessments

3

People trained

167

Patients served

In acute care, we see young patients facing intense crises. We provide a lifeline for children and youth in distress, helping them regain stability and giving families the support they need to move forward. The support from Sobeys ensures we have the resources to stabilize and support these children and their families when they need us most.

— Jennifer Hoppe, Clinical Manager, 3G Inpatient Unit, Mental Health Assessment Unit, Consultation Liaison Services, Child and Youth Mental Health Program, Hamilton Health Sciences

Program overview

Substance Use Supports for Pediatrics

Offering connected substance use support from hospital to community, with trained addiction specialists providing care at the bedside to help youth facing serious challenges with substance use and addiction

Using Virtual Reality to Deliver CBT

Exposure treatment can be difficult to implement. For example, for patients who fear weather events we often have to rely on videos, which are less effective than real-life exposures. In this pilot, virtual reality will expose patients to difficult experiences in immersive but controlled ways, and help them practice related strategies.

How Family of Support Funding Has Helped

Family of Support funds have helped to:

Support the recruitment of staff who deliver integrated substance use services bridging from hospital to community and contributing to capacity building within the hospital.
Enable the purchase of VR-related technology, including software, headsets, and an app.
Support the collection of data to shape treatment, enabling care teams to note how long a user engaged in the exposure, for example, and to gather physiological data to evaluate user responses.

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