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For more than 40 years, YSSN has provided quality services and supports to all members of the community. As an organization, we are committed to evolving to best meet the diverse and changing needs of the people we support.
The pandemic granted many opportunities to develop new ways to offer supportive services that are tailored to those who use them. We expanded the availability of our services in communities where our clients live and partnered with other agencies to bring additional expertise to the support of our clients’ well-being.
Bringing services close to the community and supporting more individuals where they live has been a long-standing vision for YSSN’s Crisis Program. We want to leverage our strengths in telephone and chat crisis response, while at the same time increasing our ability to provide welcoming and supportive crisis bed and safe-bed programming.
To accomplish these goals and achieve our mission of supporting people with comprehensive and accessible services, we are proud to announce the following Crisis Program enhancements:
- Expanded service locations for increased access: Effective April 1, 2023, YSSN will be launching Crisis beds in three locations across our catchment area. Our beds will now be accessible in Thornhill, Newmarket, and South Simcoe, replacing the original, single Newmarket location.
- Collaborating with agencies to provide more care availability options: Working with community partners allows YSSN to offer additional services to the people we support, including expanded resource options and more detailed service plans.
In addition to these expansions, YSSN will continue to offer our existing Crisis services, including 24/7 access to Crisis Workers via chat, text, and phone.
YSSN’s Crisis Program services will now be available in more communities, allowing more people to have access, reducing the need for travel when in crisis, and diverting those in crisis away from emergency department visits at a time when our healthcare system is overwhelmed.
“YSSN is proud to partner with agencies like Reena and Krasman Centre to expand our capacity to offer dedicated crisis support, including offering crisis beds in three communities in our catchment area,” said YSSN Executive Director Kimberly Thorn, “Partnering with local agencies gives YSSN expanded capacity to provide the specialized, individualized support for which we are known.”
“The trauma and uncertainty of a major change in one’s life can be reduced with the empathy and support of a person with similar lived experience. The partnership between YSSN and Krasman Centre means that a trained Peer Supporter is present at the Crisis and Safe Beds Programs for people making these transformations. Peer supporters provide dignity and hope during difficult times, easing this process,” shared Dylan de la Riviere, Harm Reduction and Outreach Programs Manager at Krasman Centre.
James Sejjengo, Reena’s Manager, Residential & Family Supports, added “With new and rare housing opportunities to a community challenged with finding suitable and accessible housing, the collaboration between YSSN and Reena has been a welcome addition to resources in Southern York Region to provide housing solutions to those in dire need. It is collaborations such as this one between YSSN and Reena that make Ontario a great place to live.”