Monday June 12, 2021 | VICTORIA, BC
By Jalen Codrington | Island Social Trends | Editor: Mary P Brooke
For youth, it’s been a year like no other in modern history, dealing with the challenges of online, remote, and otherwise disrupted schooling during a viral pandemic that to date has killed over 4 million people worldwide (see current World Health Organization COVID-19 statistics).
To combat mental health challenges, the BC Government announced on Friday July 9 that $45,000 has been issued to expand the Student Mental Health Toolkit and the virtual Stigma-Free School Program.
“The pandemic has been hard on the mental health of many children, youth and their families,” said Sheila Malcolmson, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions.
“I am grateful to partner with Stigma-Free Society to expand the reach of mental health supports for young people at this critical time,” says Malcolmson.
Grades 4 to 12:
The toolkit is an online resource with content developed to engage youth in grades 4-7 and 8-12.
It offers mental wellness lesson plans that follow BC Curriculum guidelines while using mediums like comic books, illustrated animations, and a section devoted to diverse-ability and inclusion.
Equipping students with stress management skills:
“Youth are often ill-equipped to face mental health challenges and the stigma or discrimination that is associated with conditions such as anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and autism spectrum disorder,” said Andrea Paquette, president, Stigma-Free Society.
“In this time of intersecting societal crises, we are seeing great need around student mental health, and a unique opportunity to invest in mental health supports for children, youth and teachers in communities across British Columbia through digital outreach.”
The Stigma-Free Society has set a goal to expand its reach to an additional 10,000 students in B.C. over the next 18 months with a focus on rural and remote communities.
Ongoing pandemic:
The COVID-19 pandemic was officially declared in BC on March 17, 2020.
Even with immunization well underway (at July 9, 2021 a first dose of COVID-19 vaccine had been administered to 78.6% of British Columbians of ages 12+ and 41.3% of persons age 12+ have received a second dose) there are still variants of the SARS-CoV-2 (aka COVID-19) virus emerging and circulating.
Under these conditions, youth will be back in school this fall under some degree of public health management.
Hotline resources:
There are many other hotlines available 24 hours a day for those who need help:
- 1-800-SUICIDE: Call 1-800-784-2433 if you are having a crisis or are concerned about someone who may be.
- 24 Hour Rape Crisis Line: Call 604-872-8212 for free, confidential, phone based crisis intervention, information, and referral.
- 310-Mental Health: Call 310-6789 (no area code needed) toll-free anywhere in B.C. to access emotional support, information and resources specific to mental health and substance use issues.
- Helpline for Children: If you are a child or youth and would like to talk to someone call the Helpline for Children at 310-1234 (no area code needed).
- Kid’s Help Phone: Call 1-800-668-6868 to speak to a professional counsellor.
- VictimLinkBC: Call 1-800-563-0808 (toll-free) for confidential support. VictimLinkBC provides information and referral services to all victims of crime and immediate crisis support to victims of family and sexual violence.
