This program is free and is intended for clinical staff in Central region that provide care for patients with mental health and addiction concerns in urgent and emergent settings. The curriculum will specifically address urgent and emergent mental health care and the needs of this population.

This program aims to:

1. Build non-schedule 1 & community clinicians’ capacity to manage complex mental health cases.
2. Enhance relationships between sites and foster greater empathy towards the issues that are unique in each setting.
3. Ensure a shared understanding of legal requirements, transfer processes and PICU/ECA and ward criteria across the system.

• The hub: A team of experts at a main healthcare center.
• The spokes: Local healthcare providers such as doctors, nurses and crisis workers.
• Weekly online sessions: The hub team provides a short presentation. Spoke participants share patient cases and get advice from participants. This model helps local providers develop new skills and aims to reduce the need for specialist referrals.

Below is a list of curriculum topics that will likely be featured in this program.

• Overview of the Mental Health System
• Community Mental Health & Addiction Services
• Urgent and Emergent Issues in Concurrent Disorders
• Medicolegal Issues – Mental Health Act, Consent, Capacity and Privacy
• Frequent ED Visitors
• What to do while waiting for care?
• When the person is both mentally and medically very unwell
• Regional Priorities