British Columbians living with concurrent brain injuries and mental health and substance use challenges, and their families, will soon be able to provide input about the type of care they want and need to help them toward healing and hope.
BC Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions is providing $35,000 in grant funding to the Constable Gerald Breese Centre for Traumatic Life Losses, a centre that serves people and families in BC who have suffered a catastrophic loss through death, injury or other life-altering events.
The announcement was made by BC Minstry of Health and Addictions on Friday, June 19, the National Day of Collaboration for Brain Injury Services and Supports.
“It is a heartbreaking reality that some people are left with life-changing brain injuries after surviving an overdose, and many struggle to find the supports they need,” stated Judy Darcy, minister of mental health and addictions, in a media release. “That's why, as BC continues to grapple with two public health emergencies, I’m really pleased that we can support the centre to expand its outstanding work to help people living with a traumatic brain injury and their families.”
The centre will use the funding for its BC Heads Together Think Tanks project, according to the release. As part of the project, an interactive website will be launched at the end of August and a series of virtual events will take place between October and November.
The purpose of the project is to gather input from communities, health authorities, brain injury associations, family members and people living with brain injuries throughout the province. The centre will use the input to draft a plan and recommendations to improve brain injury rehabilitation and community supports for people living with brain injury and mental health and substance use challenges in BC.
“Having the opportunity to address the intersections of mental health, addictions and brain injury in a meaningful way is a major step forward in the brain injury community,” stated Janelle Breese Biagioni, CEO and founder, Constable Gerald Breese Centre for Traumatic Life Losses. “The BC Heads Together Think Tanks project will provide an avenue for the collective voices of British Columbians to work collaboratively with our government on this important issue.”
