Before the pandemic, 28,000 children and youth were waiting as long as 2.5 years for mental health care. As the pandemic has weared on, we have seen the impact on kids and youth through parents concerned about changes in their child’s behaviours, to the sharp increases for services that our child and youth mental health centres are seeing. As the need for services increases, so has the severity of the mental illnesses young people are experiencing.

To respond to the anticipated increased demand for intensive treatment services, the Lead Agency Consortium, Children’s Mental Health Ontario (CMHO) and the Provincial Centre of Excellence have collaborated to establish a 3 year provincial training initiative (PTI) for intensive treatment.  This project is specifically designed to increase the capacity within the sector to address the treatment needs of children and youth with complex and significant mental health needs.

The goal of the PTI is to create a sustainable and supported provincial training model that will increase the number of expert, trained clinicians able to deliver evidence-based treatment services to children and youth with complex and significant mental health needs. Building this capacity in the sector will ensure children and youth with complex and significant mental health needs will have consistent access to the appropriate evidence-based, intensive treatment services within their communities.