Mental Health Resources for Health Care Professionals
Niagara Region Mental Health offers free counselling, treatment and case management services for youth, adults and seniors with serious and persistent mental illness.
Mental health services
- Assertive Community Treatment Team (Age 16+)
Individuals served by this service often have co-existing problems, such as homelessness, substance abuse or involvement with the judicial system.
Eligibility
To qualify for this service, an individual must meet all of the following criteria:
- Live with a psychotic disorder, such as schizophrenia, or bipolar disorder with psychotic features
- Experience ongoing illness that impacts several aspects of their life, including activities of daily living, housing, finances, general health and relationships
- Have had multiple hospital admissions
- Need treatment support provided in their home or community
- Have not been successful with less intensive programming
- Have a focus on recovery
- Can work with a team of professionals
- Case Management (Age 16+)
This service provides support to individuals with serious, ongoing mental health needs.
Eligibility
To qualify for this service, an individual must meet all of the following criteria:
- Suffer from ongoing and serious mental illness
- Have difficulty managing medication(s) and any side effects
- Need help coordinating multiple services
- Need help with life skills and activities of daily living
- Require education and counselling for themselves and their family
- Early Psychosis Intervention (Ages 14-35)
It's been proven that people can recover from psychotic episodes if they receive treatment early. Symptoms of psychosis include hallucinations, delusions, ideas of reference, paranoia, disorganized thoughts, speech or behaviour.
Eligibility
To qualify for this service, an individual must meet all of the following criteria:
- Suspected of experiencing symptoms of psychosis or has been diagnosed with a first episode of psychosis
- Has never been treated for psychosis or has been treated with antipsychotic medication for less than six months
- Supported by a health care provider willing to continue with treatment recommendations
If a person doesn't meet criteria for this service, we'll attempt to provide information for other services that may be available.
- Geriatric Case Management (Age 60+)
Our geriatric program provides ongoing follow-up support to seniors in a safe environment of their choosing. This service is for seniors who may be experiencing mood changes, hallucinations, anxiety, paranoia, and cognitive problems related to depression.
This service consists of nurses, mental health caseworkers and social workers who provide:
- Counselling
- Health teaching (medication, diagnosis, symptoms and recovery)
- Support for family and links to community services
- Advocacy
Eligibility
To qualify for this service, an individual must meet all of the following criteria:
- Suffering from serious and ongoing mental illness
- Willing to work towards recovery
- Live in their own home or a retirement home
- Telemedicine (Age 16+)
Telemedicine is a service that provides consultation appointments with a psychiatrist through secure video conferencing.
Appointments can be held in our offices at one of our sites in Thorold, Niagara Falls or Welland. Individuals will complete an initial assessment with a nurse or nurse practitioner before meeting the psychiatrist.
Reasons for referring to this program include making a mental health diagnosis and evaluating medications.
After the consultation, family physicians and nurse practitioners will continue to provide ongoing care based on treatment recommendations from the psychiatrist.
Eligibility criteria
- 16 and older
- A family physician or nurse practitioner is willing to provide on-going care
- Niagara resident
- Client cannot have suspected dementia / neurocognitive disorder
- Only physicians and nurse practitioners can refer to this program
We don't do parenting assessments, Ontario Disability Support Program applications, legal requests or developmental assessments.
If available, attach any blood work done within the past six months to the referral form.
- Youth Mental Health and Addiction Services (Ages 17-25)
This service is provided in the individual's home, our office, or at a location of their choice in the community.
The service provides assessment, treatment plan and counselling for young people experiencing emerging mental health or addiction concerns.
Participants must:
- Have little to no prior specialized child / mental health treatment
- Have exceeded the maximum age of other youth mental health services
- Be a Niagara resident
Make a referral
- Online referral
- Download and fax referral
- Call 905-688-2854 ext. 7353
Intake calls are answered Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
© Niagara Region - 1815 Sir Isaac Brock Way, Thorold, ON, L2V 4T7 - Phone: 905-980-6000, Toll-free: 1-800-263-7215
