The Youth System Innovation Group (YSIG) at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is creating a National Youth Advisory Committee on mental health and addictions. We seek to engage and empower youth age 12-24 who have an interest in impacting how youth services are created and delivered. We also want to include those youth groups that already run in an advisory capacity to other mental health and/or addiction agencies. It is understandable that the youth on these local committees may not want to take on the extra responsibility and time commitment of another committee however; we would like to extend our reach to these local groups in a different way. We would like to build a network of local youth groups across Canada to be utilized for all of the involved groups’ benefit. If your local youth group has an initiative that they would like feedback on but requires a larger audience, it would be as simple as contacting us at the NYAC to link you to all or some of our contacts. This would not only be a way for youth groups across Canada to communicate but it would be a way for us to share ideas about what works and what doesn’t work in different areas of the country. It gives us (as youth) our own platform for knowledge exchange – youth to youth. If your youth group would like to be a part of this initiative, it is as simple as completing the following information and mailing it back to us. We will then input the group into the database and utilize the group’s contact information in the way that you have indicated you would be interested. Name of Youth Group: Name of Supporting Agency or Organization (if applicable): What Sector is the Youth Group Associated With?: Town and Province/Territory of Youth Group: Name of Main Contact in Youth Group: Email Address: How Many Youth are in Youth Group (approximately)?: What type of involvement would you like (please bold all that apply): Send information for attending workshops/focus groups/etc. that wish to involve youth participants. Send information regarding surveys and other online or teleconference engagement opportunities that may need youth participation. Don’t send any information or opportunities – I will contact you if/when our group would like to network. Along with the National Youth Advisory Committee’s youth group network, we are seeking to engage youth 12-24 to be a part of the committee itself. A primary responsibility of youth in this committee is to act as an advisor to the National Youth Screening Project; a project led by Joanna Henderson, Ph.D., C.Psych., and Gloria Chaim, MSW, from the Child, Youth, and Family Services at CAMH. This project aims to enhance service provider capacity, increase opportunities for early intervention, and improve pathways to treatment for youth with substance use and mental health concerns. Committee members will engage with service providers and stakeholders to give feedback and recommendations for change. This committee will be a safe forum for youth to talk about their concerns and experiences with accessing and utilizing support services (i.e. housing, mental health, addictions, youth justice, family services, etc.); however, previous personal experience with youth services is not a requirement. This network would also be contacted for future opportunities for youth engagement and feedback related to mental health and addictions. As this will be a nationwide committee, we seek a diverse range of participants from communities both large and small; fortunately, advancements in technology make this possible. Attached is a promotional poster that can be used to advertise to youth with whom you’re involved. Additionally, we encourage you to speak with youth that may be interested. For more information, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with Olivia Heffernan, YSIG Program Assistant. She can be contacted by email at [email protected] or by phone at 416-535-8501 ext. 36126.
Posted on: Thu, 30 Jan 2014 02:10:45 +0000
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