Historic Donation for the IWK that will Change the Future of Mental Health Care for Children, Youth and their Families

HALIFAX, NS, Sept. 9, 2024 /CNW/ - Today was an historic day for Maritime children and youth living with mental health and addictions. Myron and Berna Garron announced a monumental $25 million donation to the IWK — the single largest individual donation to health care in Atlantic Canada.

Together with IWK Health and the Province of Nova Scotia, the IWK Foundation celebrated this catalyst gift that will support a reimagined therapeutic environment for IWK mental health and addictions intensive services in the community, the final component of an Ecosystem for Child & Adolescent Mental Health and Addictions (Mental Health and Addictions Ecosystem).

According to available information, this Mental Health and Addictions Ecosystem is the first of its kind in the world. A place where all the mental health services for children and youth are connected. This provides a unique opportunity to create a truly unified mental health and addictions system of care, flowing from the communities where youth live to the IWK for specialized services including intensive services. Regardless of which door patients walk through, the spaces and places will reflect the IWK's dedication to excellence in care.

Myron and Berna Garron have been at the forefront of unprecedented change at the IWK, and the opening of the Garron Centre for Child & Adolescent Mental Health (Garron Centre) 10 years ago is just one example demonstrating the power and impact of their philanthropy.

"The lives of Maritime patients have literally been saved because of the Garron Centre and its incredible care team," says Jennifer Gillivan, President & CEO, IWK Foundation. "Through this tremendous catalyst investment in the Mental Health and Addictions Ecosystem, their generosity will once again save and change lives not only today but for years to come. Thank you, Myron and Berna, for once again believing in the IWK and for investing in the future of our children and youth."

The IWK is the only facility in the country that has the expertise and care models to deliver all levels of mental health and addictions (MHA) care to children, youth and their families — ranging from community-based services such as outpatient clinics; shared care community clinics and integrated youth services; to highly specialized inpatient, intensive services and emergency care for severe illness. As a result, the IWK is uniquely positioned to create this first-of-its-kind Mental Health and Addictions Ecosystem that will also include embedded research within a learning health system model and will create the blueprint for other health centres and jurisdictions around the world to emulate.

In addition to mental health intensive services, key components of this provincial ecosystem include the Garron Centre for Child & Adolescent Mental Health, the Emergency Mental Health and Addictions space (EMHAS) in the new IWK Emergency Department and Integrated Youth Services-NS (IYS-NS).

"Our strong connection to the Maritimes and our long-standing history with IWK Health has made today's investment in IWK mental health intensive services a natural continuation of what we proudly began 10 years ago with the opening of the Garron Centre," says Myron and Berna Garron. "We believe in the IWK and its incredible care teams. We are honoured to continue to change the future of mental health care for Maritime children and youth by supporting a healing environment for mental health intensive services."

The IWK will create a therapeutic environment that will bring together intensive mental health and addictions services for those children and youth who are very sick but do not require inpatient care. These patients may require intensive rehabilitative interventions, over longer periods of time, beyond what can be offered in an outpatient clinic. Currently, these intensive services are fragmented, spread out across the region and can be difficult to access. Children and youth requiring this intensive level of service are cared for in spaces that are not conducive to healing with waitlists that can result in their condition worsening before they can access care.

A reimagined therapeutic healing environment for mental health intensive services, that ensures collaboration among care team members and is easily accessible from across the region, is urgently needed to care for these children and youth.

"We have learned a lot from our Garron Centre where a state-of-the-art environment has led to outstanding care and outcomes," says Dr. Alexa Bagnell, IWK Chief of Psychiatry. "We have the people and the wonderful teams to make intensive mental health and addictions services transformation possible. We now need to focus on our spaces to support the delivery of excellence in care for our children, youth and families who need more specialized and intensive treatment. We know experiences matter and having a welcoming and inclusive space accessible to more young people brings hope and caring when it is needed the most."

The enhancement of Mental Health and Addictions services for children and youth is a priority for the Province of Nova Scotia. This is evidenced by their recent commitment to launching Integrated Youth Services sites across the province and the IWK Emergency Department redevelopment with dedicated mental health care space. The Province has also supported the expansion of community-shared care partnership clinics and the African Nova Scotian service across the region.

"Improving mental health and addictions supports for Nova Scotians, including our most vulnerable, requires collaborations with all our partners across the healthcare system," said Brian Comer, Minister of Addictions and Mental Health. "On behalf of the Province, our sincerest gratitude goes out to the Garron family for this incredible donation. We know this historic and generous gift will help support the IWK as they continue their important work for generations to come."

This Mental Health and Addictions Ecosystem will ensure that no matter where children and youth are in their mental health journey, the IWK will be there to help them navigate the care they need, when and where they need it. By working together, this ecosystem will provide earlier intervention, a reduction in wait times and access to the care youth need in an environment that supports their treatment and recovery.

"On behalf of the entire IWK community, thank you Myron and Berna for putting Maritime patients and their families first by recognizing the value of spaces within a connected system and how space impacts patient care, recovery and healing journeys," says Dr. Krista Jangaard, President & CEO, IWK Health. "With your continued commitment you are joining philanthropists like Izaak Walton Killam in creating a legacy that will write the next chapter for our children, youth and their families receiving care at IWK Health."

In addition to this catalyst gift, the IWK Foundation is privileged to be working alongside IWK Health, the Province of Nova Scotia and other members of our donor community, to change the future of mental health and addictions care for children and youth across the region.

Why the IWK is uniquely positioned to Create an Ecosystem for Child & Adolescent Mental Health and Addictions (Mental Health and Addictions Ecosystem).

• The IWK is one of only a few hospitals across Canada that utilizes a model of care where medical and psychiatric care are fully integrated.
  
  
• The size and geographic location of Nova Scotia is the ideal place to create the Mental Health and Addictions Ecosystem.
  
  
• The IWK has the only 24/7 fully staffed Mental Health and Addictions crisis service that includes access to emergency psychiatric care and is integrated as part of the Emergency Department. Services are provided to children and youth across the province and the Maritimes.
  
  The IWK Mental Health and Addictions program has a wealth of expertise in the treatment of child and adolescent mental health and addictions provided by diverse teams of highly specialized healthcare professionals.

About the IWK Foundation

The IWK Foundation is a champion of excellence in women's and children's health and medicine and works in partnership with IWK Health to support their vision of providing quality care to women, children, youth and families in the Maritimes and beyond. Our donors are passionately committed to making a difference for Maritime families, contributing over $25.2 million in support of the most urgent care priorities at the IWK last year. Funds raised also support the IWK's global leadership in research and knowledge sharing, which in turn improves lives worldwide. Visit www.iwkfoundation.org for more information. 

SOURCE IWK Foundation

Media Contacts: Lesley Gaum, IWK Foundation, P: 902.489.2867, E: [email protected]; Sarah Greening, IWK Foundation, P: 902.266.3306, E: [email protected]