As many parents know, the transition from child to teen can be a bumpy road. For those with mental health and substance use challenges, the journey can be overwhelming.  May 7 is Child and Youth Mental Health Day in B.C., and this year, it coincides with the recent opening of the Carlile Youth Concurrent Disorders Centre, a dedicated unit for youth with mental health and substance use challenges, located at the HOpe Centre in North Vancouver.

Carlile Youth Concurrent Disorders Centre now accepting patients

The 10-bed unit for teens aged 13 to 18 years focuses on assessing and stabilizing patients for two to three weeks at a time. It’s a safe, welcoming, and friendly space with private bedrooms, lots of natural light, spacious recreation and treatment areas, and a gym. Once the youth are stabilized, they continue longer-term treatment on an outpatient basis while living at home.

“The intake process has been very collaborative,” says Dale Handley, Clinical Planner for the Carlile Centre. “We are working with youth who are resistant to treatment but who have opted to stay at the centre due to the environment and clinical staff.”

A mother’s story

Deborah Maguire-Tucker believes her son, Owen, would still be alive today if the Carlile Centre existed 10 years ago . “With the Carlile Centre, and our communities’ commitment to change the dialogue surrounding mental health, Owen would have been better equipped with the services and tools he needed to find hope. The stigma surrounding mental health created an environmental of isolation and frustration,” says Deborah. After a courageous struggle, Owen eventually lost hope and took his life.

The Maguire-Tuckers’ sent their 15-year old son half way across the country to an addiction centre because there was no residential concurrent disorders program in B.C.
“It is my passion to play a role in our community in reducing the stigma of mental health and in doing so, advocate for youth” says Deborah.

“As co-founder of Talk at The Top, an annual youth mental health summit for high school student on the North Shore/Sea to Sky community, it is my belief that if we create an environment for youth to change how we talk about mental health combined with early intervention, we will give our youth the foundation to foster hope and in turn save lives.”