The Huron-Perth Catholic District School Board has launched a new Summer Wellness Line.
The Board's Mental Health and Wellness Coach, Kaitie Westbrook, says the pandemic impacted student mental health and they've seen an increase in anxiety and depression. The Ministry has provided funding to help them address that even outside of the school year. Westbrook says both the Avon Maitland and Huron-Perth Catholic Board are providing a Summer Wellness Line.
“It was really the Avon Maitland Board and their lead who had provided Huron-Perth Catholic with this idea as they had provided Summer Wellness Line a few years back when they received the funding. So we really credit them in terms of their support and having us be in a position to launch the Summer Wellness Line this year," Westbrook shared.
Westbrook says the Wellness Line is for students from grades six to twelve and it provides access to a school-based, regulated mental health professional, whether the student is looking for a supportive check-in, support in utilizing the coping strategies, maybe they need access to community resources, or just to learn about community-based mental health support.
“The Wellness Line is not a crisis line but being able to call in and connect with someone by phone, you can then have a virtual appointment if you'd like or that coach could make arrangements to meet you, depending on the circumstance," Westbrook added.
The Wellness Line is available to any student within the Huron-Perth Catholic District School Board. The Wellness Line can be reached at 226-921-0653 and anyone looking for more information about the Summer Wellness Line can contact Mental Health Lead Kaitie Westbrook at kwestbrook@hpcdsb.ca.
