The Canadian Mental Health Association Cochrane-Timiskaming Branch is taking the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) situation in Canada extremely seriously, and the health and safety of our clients, staff and the community is our first priority.
As of 18 March 2020, we have made the decision to close our offices to the public and move to an essential-services only model. Please review the information below to find out what this means for you.
Office Closures
All four CMHA-CT offices (Timmins, Kirkland Lake, Englehart, New Liskeard) will be closed to the public until further notice. This means that any client visits and scheduled programming will be conducted virtually when possible (over the telephone), except for those deemed ‘essential services’ where a virtual meeting is not possible (see below).
Programs will be reaching out to individual clients as required to discuss alternative arrangements and how to care for yourself or those around you.
Our local mental health services will continue to be delivered to clients:
- Telephone Wellness Checks
- Med Drops
- Injections
- Housing
- Primary Care (limited)
- RAAM (Rapid Access Addiction Medicine) – (Timiskaming area only)
For all services, please wait to be contacted by your case manager/support worker. Please do not show up to a scheduled appointment unless you have first been contacted by telephone. We appreciate your patience at this time as we work hard to connect with all our clients and minimize disruption.
What about those experiencing distress or crisis?
If you or someone you care for is in crisis, please call:
During Business Hours (8:30am – 4:30pm):
Timmins: 705-267-8100 ext. 0
Kirkland Lake: 705-567-9596 ext. 0
New Liskeard/Englehart: 705-647-4444 ext. 0
After Business Hours (4:30pm – 8:30am)
Timiskaming Crisis Response System: 1-888-665-8888
The Warm Line and Peer Crisis Support Services line is also available from 6pm – 12am, 7 days a week by calling 1-866-856-9276(WARM). They provide non-crisis and crisis telephone support from a recovery and peer informed perspective. The support line is answered by individuals with lived experience with mental health concerns, addiction, and/or trauma.
Reducing anxiety related to COVID-19
CMHA recognizes that at this time of uncertainty, symptoms of anxiety and depression may be exacerbated. These five basic tips may help individuals experiencing heightened mental health concerns to remain calm and balanced as this public health situation unfolds.
- Considering the level of attention and seriousness being paid to the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s normal to feel anxious. Try not to avoid, ignore or suppress anxious thoughts. Instead, be aware of your anxiety and accept that you’re feeling anxious in this situation. Try to keep things in perspective; notice and challenge your thoughts that may be extreme or unhelpful.
- Self-care is critically important at this time, as worries can be made worse if we aren’t taking care of ourselves. Lean on social supports, try to get enough sleep, eat healthy, exercise and engage in enjoyable activities. Do the things you would typically do to support your health, and be sure to use caution and follow health and safety guidelines while doing them.
- Seek information from reliable news sources only. Limit checking in on the latest news to short, defined periods, and refrain from setting related push notifications on your device. Appropriate information consumption may be calming and can lessen the sense of danger.
- Take the recommended precautions as outlined by Health Canada and other credible health agencies. Remain focused on the factors within your control, such as washing hands, covering your mouth during coughs and sneezes, avoiding non-essential travel, etc.
- If you’re noticing that your symptoms of anxiety (in association with COVID-19 or otherwise) are causing you significant distress or are interfering with your ability to function normally, reach out for formal mental health supports from a recognized agency, such as CMHA.
Provincial Support Resources
Information about COVID-19
Lack of information and uncertainty can bring fear—educating yourself through reliable sources about what’s going on can give you a sense of control. Good sources of reliable information are:
Your provincial/territorial public health authority
The Government of Canada’s COVID-19 web page
How can I find out more?
We are continuously monitoring the situation. For clients, please stay in touch with your case manager.
We will be adding updates to our website and social media pages as required, so please check back frequently.
For general COVID-19 information and guidance, please check the resources listed above.
We are confident that Canada has the skills and resources to minimize the impacts of this virus as much as possible. We appreciate that this situation is unprecedented and is causing disruption to many important services. Your well-being and caring for our community is our first priority. We appreciate your understanding as we work to be a responsible care provider.
Your CMHA-CT Team