Wide range of on-site low-barrier and integrated wellness services to include mental health and substance use services as well as education about nutrition, sexual health and community programs

Youth who attend John Barsby Community School in Nanaimo can now have their health and wellness needs met without leaving the school grounds. Since September 8, 2015 the John Barsby Wellness Centre has had more than 300 visits from students for a variety of reasons such as stress management, relationship, family support and sore throats. The partners who collaborated to open the Centre gathered to celebrate its official opening with John Barsby students and staff.  Read the rest of this article at Island Health…

On Pink Shirt Day, we stand up to bullying and vow to spread kindness. Please RT and tag a friend to #PinkItForward:https://t.co/QS7fahq8jx

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) February 24, 2016

Nanaimo now has a better understanding of the homeless situation within its borders

Earlier this month, the City of Nanaimo participated in the inaugural Cross-Canada Coordinated Point-in-Time Homeless Count, conducted during a 24-hour period and designed to give a clearer picture of the homeless situation in participating communities. Those who identified themselves as homeless were asked to fill out a survey consisting of 24 questions.  Read the rest of this article at Nanaimo News Bulletin…

Dr. David Goldbloom, senior medical adviser at Toronto’s Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, is among the nearly 4,800 licensed psychiatrists in Canada

In a new book written with a fellow psychiatrist, Dr. Pier Bryden, Goldbloom offers a frank and engrossing account of what it’s like to walk in his shoes. How Can I Help?: A Week in My Life as a Psychiatrist takes readers behind the doors of the country’s largest mental-health hospital and chronicles the daily challenges and victories Goldbloom faces when treating patients struggling with psychiatric illness.  Read the rest of this article at The Globe and Mail…