Scaling up: Aklavik joins the ACCESS OM family

March 7, 2019|News
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It has been more than 2 years since ACCESS OM has been part of the transformation of youth mental health services in the small community of Ulukhaktok in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region of the Northwest Territories. Building on the success of the project there, the IRC has decided to begin scaling up the project to include a second community called Aklavik. This is a larger hamlet with a population of over 1500.

After a sewage problem caused the closure of the youth center in Aklavik, ACCESS OM funding helped contribute to the work needed to reopen this important space and to funding a full-time Youth Worker position to ensure the youth center is consistently staffed.

With the space reopened and committed staff, new programming has started targeting older youth between the ages of 16-25. This age group had been underserviced.

In Aklavik, the initial focus of ACCESS OM involvement will be the youth space and early identification activities targeting youth who would not have come in for services and activities before.

Early feedback received through focus groups has indicated that the number of youth attending the Aklavik youth centre has steadily increased.

We look forward to hearing more in the upcoming months as feedback and data is being collected in Aklavik – the newest community joining the ACCESS OM family.