2021

Skills for Change – Mental Health and Wellness Department

Location:  Toronto, ON

Quick Facts

• Audience: Settlement, social and health service providers
• Population of Interest: Immigrant and refugee populations
• The Need:  Many newcomers face several barriers and challenges when arriving to Canada, and this is often coupled with feelings of stress.
• What's Promising:  A holistic approach to improving the mental health and well-being of newcomers that includes services to overcome barriers and to manage their stress by learning coping skills.
• Key Takeaway:  Skills for Change collaborates with other community agencies/partnerships, providing information about relevant services and resources to clients as needed.

Skills for Change pioneer’s programs that respond to shifting immigration and workshop trends and lead to employment. They provide professional workshops, settlement counselling and other services to over 14,000 people a year. From its inception, Skills for Change assumed a leadership role to address policy issues, undertake public education and research on issues affecting immigrants and refugees. At the same time, we pioneered innovative service models specific to internationally trained professionals.

At Skills for Change, The Mental Health and Wellness Department provides counselling, interactive workshops, support groups, and educational sessions. These include one-on-one counselling, COVID-19 Recovery and Resiliency Program, Women Connecting with Women and the Virtual Connections Program. These services create a safe and supportive space for participants to discuss and reflect on their life experiences. The purpose is to support and empower individuals who may need to reduce and manage their stress, learn healthy coping skills, and holistically improve their mental and emotional well-being.

The services are offered by registered social workers, registered psychotherapists and/or Canadian certified counsellors. The mental health team is supervised by a clinical supervisor at the agency. These colleagues are also registered with the relevant regulatory bodies.

We collaborate with other community agencies/partnerships, providing information about relevant services and resources to clients as needed, as well as inviting guest speakers by conducting essential outreach activities. Skills for Change is funded locally, provincially, and nationally to help newcomers such as immigrants, convention refugees, and permanent residents overcome certain barriers and challenges they may face when arriving in Canada. For instance, language barriers, food security, transportation, mental health challenges, employment, settlement and much more. Our mental health services are available to anyone but are tailored to address the stress factors newcomers face in Canada.

The mental health and wellness program on its own supports visible minority people with disabilities and/or deaf, First Nations, Métis or Inuit, Black Racialized Immigrant, refugee and/or non-status, official language minority (francophone), LGBTQ2+, Older/Seniors/Elders, youth, women, girls and much more.

COSTI’s Newcomer Wellness Program 

Location:  Greater Toronto Area

Quick Facts

• Audience:  Settlement, social and health services providers
• Population of Interest: Immigrant and refugee populations
• The Need:  In November 2018, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration identified that the experience of persecution, genocide and sexual violence have left many Yazidi women and children with severe posttraumatic stress disorder. Additionally, the common language of communication with Yazidis is Arabic (as service providers who speak Kurmanji are not widely available). This triggered many of the Yazidi refugees as it is the language of their captors and oppressors.
• What's Promising:  COSTI’s innovative engagement strategies based on cultural humility and stakeholder engagement helped to identify traditional, communal and faith-based approaches to deal with the emotional distress of the horrific and traumatic events experienced by the Yazidi people.
• Key Takeaway:  The importance of basing decisions on the needs of the community being served is at the foundation of COSTI’s model. This service model acknowledges the resilience inherent in all newcomers and recognizes the importance of working with allied stakeholders to remove barriers and learn how traditional cultural practices of healing improve the wellbeing of newcomer populations. Specific approaches or takeaways for working with Yazidis include:
  
  -Working from a strengths or assets-based approach as would be done with all newcomers, regardless of pre-migration experience. This type of approach builds newcomers’ own strengths, emphasizing their resourcefulness and resilience; changing the mindset to being survivors rather than victims.
  -Providing opportunities and time to mourn the loss of their family, community, homeland.
  -Using female service providers since they are seen as safe; survivors were traumatized by their experience as ‘sex slaves’.
  -Allowing a slow process of resettlement to accommodate posttraumatic stress disorder

Many of the staff hired at COSTI speak languages that reflect the newcomers they serve, Arabic, Farsi and Urdu and have cultural knowledge of how to engage and work with newcomers. Staff are aware and understand how stigma associated with mental health and emotional distress influence help seeking behaviours, so providing services with scheduling flexibility and in non-threatening, safe places help to increase participation.

However, serving the Yazidi community presented new challenges for COSTI staff. They had little knowledge of the customs, culture and spiritual practices of Yazidis. To overcome some of these challenges staff gathered information and consulted researchers at York University. Meeting their language needs was extremely challenging, there was only one known interpreter who spoke Kurmanji.

Many of the Yazidis had suffered horrible and tragic traumatic experiences, having lost children and partners in the most unspeakable ways. The majority of Yazidi community was made up of women with young female children. Most of the children had not attended school and had never been in a structured school setting. COSTI social workers and psychiatrists worked together with settlement, resettlement assistance programs, client support services workers and volunteers to find housing, and ensure basic needs were met before they could address the mental health distress caused by displacement, loss and trauma.

A network of agencies commissioned to deliver services and support the resettlement of the Yazidi people came together to discuss how to engage and increase access to services.

Many of the Yazidi were not familiar with traditional western based interventions to treat mental distress and declined many of the services.

Meeting regularly with all the agencies allowed for innovative approaches. All community agencies involved felt that the best approach would be to listen and ask the Yazidi people what they needed as opposed to referring individuals to services that were unfamiliar.

One of the alternative practices that COSTI recognized as helpful was that Yazidis drew on support from each other while they built trusting relationships with counsellors. Together the community of agencies found space for the Yazidi community to meet, connect, practice their faith and share a meal. No facilitator was necessary to guide the discussions. Providing the Yazidi women an opportunity to meet regularly in a safe place, share their stories and build relationships became the healing tool they needed.

The Yazidi community began to trust the many staff and organizations providing support, and as we know trust is a key principle in the healing journey from trauma. Currently, COSTI is working closely with the York Region School Board to support Yazidi families and children.

Archway Community Services 

Location:  Abbotsford and Mission, BC

Quick Facts

• Audience:  Settlement, social and health service providers
• Population of Interest: Immigrant and refugee populations
• The Need:  Newcomers to Canada have complex needs that can be addressed by one of the many programs available at Archway.
• What's Promising:  Wrap-around services help improve mental health
• Key Takeaway:  When the average newcomer is supported to settle well in the community with their housing, medical, education and language needs met, their mental health is also supported.

Archway Community Services is one of the largest non-profits in BC with 90+ programs serving thousands in the Fraser Valley. The organization was started in 1969 to provide Christmas gifts for low-income families and has evolved over the years to meet the emerging and changing needs of the community.

From newborn babies to seniors – they help people of all ages. From individuals escaping violence to people with addictions – they help people in crisis. From newcomers in Canada to people with disabilities – they help people feel like they belong. Archway has supported immigrants and refugees from Vietnam, Syria, India and more since the 1970s.

Services for Newcomers

Within the Multicultural and Immigrant Integration department there are twenty-six programs offered to newcomers to Canada. They range from language instruction to employment programs, advocacy for migrant workers to settlement services.

These programs help in supporting the mental health needs of newcomers in many ways. When the average newcomer is supported to settle well in the community with their housing, medical, education and language needs met, their mental health is also supported.

In addition, when the newcomer who has experienced trauma and displacement finds one-to-one support for the many barriers they face; their mental health is supported. And when they can find counselling services in their language, this also supports their mental health.

The Archway Moving Ahead Program (MAP) is one of the programs that directly addresses the mental health needs of newcomers. MAP provides wrap-around support for immigrants or refugees who are facing multiple barriers to successful settlement into Canada. Our support includes ensuring food security, providing transportation to appointments that might otherwise be missed, helping complete government paperwork, walking through the legal system with them, meeting landlords together to find housing and much more.

Through these interactions, clients slowly start to open up about other issues impacting family dynamics and life in Canada. Counselling is offered in their own language, but people often refuse as they are not familiar with the concept. Staff provide a listening ear and encourage clients to develop friendships within their community to find the mental health support they need.

Partnering with Other Programs

Partnering with other programs within Archway and in the community helps to support our clients better. Programs like the Archway Community Connections or Archway Access2English connect our clients with volunteers who help to integrate them into Canadian culture and society. Partnering with the local Primary Access clinic gives our clients health care that understands their unique needs. When clients are supported both socially and physically it impacts their mental health positively.

Archway is a place where immigrants and refugees can find support and assistance for any number of needs they may have within the same organization. Seeking help for mental health issues is never easy and newcomers have to overcome language, financial and cultural barriers. As they build relationships with Archway staff, they may feel more comfortable accessing services specifically for mental health.

Willow Place 

Location:  Manitoba

Quick Facts

• Audience:  Settlement, social and health service providers
• Population of Interest: Women who are victims of domestic violence
• The Need:  Domestic and family violence/abuse are serious public health issues in Canada and have continued to increase since the COVID-19 pandemic.
• What's Promising:  Willow Place offers a multi-faceted model of service provider for women who are victims of domestic violence, including shelter services, outreach services, follow-up services, public education, and men’s services.
• Key Takeaway:  Willow Place emphasizes the importance of healthy relationships as part of their services and programs.

Willow Place

Willow place is a 24-hour staffed charitable organization that provides inclusive, no-cost family violence prevention services to women who are victims of domestic violence irrespective of their culture and background. The heart of the work at Willow Place is healthy relationships. Willow Place is a registered Canadian charity, and a member of ShelterSafe Canada, Women's Shelter Canada, as well as the Family Violence Prevention Program's network of supportive services in Manitoba. Since family violence and abuse are serious public health issues in Canada, Willow Place services can fill the gap of Family Violence Prevention.

Programs and services

Willow Place is an inclusive organization that has supported many immigrants and refugees in the past years. Willow Place offers shelter services, outreach services, follow-up service, public education, and men’s services. These include the following components:

• Shelter services for women and children who are victims of domestic violence. It provides protective housing with a private and confidential location, including safe transportation if needed
•  24-hour staff support and safety planning assistance
• Clients have access to daily trauma-informed counselling services provided by trained family violence counsellors
• All meals and snacks are provided by the shelter
• Clients also have access to family violence information and education
• Clients have protection order preparation support and support with Legal Aid, EIA as required
• Individual and group counselling as well as children's counselling
• Access to on-site school for grades K-8 Outreach services which include counselling services for men and women, advocacy and information on family violence services
• Follow up services are provided to our clients after departing the shelter. This includes in-person or/and phone services.

Willow Place also provides family violence prevention support lines:

204-615-0311 (Winnipeg Local)
204-792-5302 (Text line)
1-877-9777-0007 (Toll free in Manitoba)

Anyone with questions about services, or in need of support with family violence and abuse situations (women, men, youth) may contact support services 24-hours, every day of the year – no-cost and confidential. Individuals do not need to be seeking shelter to access the support line.

Impact of COVID-19 on service provision

During the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been an increase in the rate of family violence generally. Before Covid, Willow Place was able to provide shelter for about 38 clients in a shared accommodation setting in which two women could share a room. Unfortunately, with the start of Covid and Willow Place adhering strictly to public health measures for the health and safety of our clients, we could only provide shelter for about 16 clients.

Willow Place continues to provide in person services for clients even during Covid. It was difficult to provide virtual services to clients who are fleeing abuse and in immediate need of supports. However, phone services are still on going for clients who only call for information and education about family violence.

To learn more, visit Willow Place’s website, here.

Achēv – TRIEC Mentoring Partnership 

Location:  Toronto, ON

Quick Facts

• Audience: Settlement Sector
• Population of Interest: Immigrant and refugee populations
• The Need:  Immigrants and refugees face numerous barriers to accessing employment in Canada, resulting in underemployed relative to their educational and professional backgrounds. There is a need for programming and policy designed to close these gaps — including in the areas of settlement and bridging.
• What's Promising:  Newcomers are connected and partnered with an industry professional in Canada who is from their occupation. As the name of the program suggests, this partnership is so that the newcomer can be mentored by the industry professional for a period of time. The purpose of this mentoring partnership is for the newcomer to have the support and guidance of a working professional in their field/occupation, as they go about the process of trying to reconnect with that field and attain their employment goals. Through the program, newcomers can expect to gain valuable resources and insight that can help them get a head start on their journey to success in Canada.
• Key Takeaway:  Partnerships are essential to the success of this promising practice. The TRIEC Mentoring Partnership program is managed by TRIEC—The Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council. Achēv is one of TRIEC’s 12 Community Partners to deliver the program to the community. In addition, TRIEC has a partnership with Employer Partners. Employer Partners offer mentoring as a professional development opportunity for their staff, significantly boosting the number of mentors who enter the program.

Achēv

Achēv is a leading charitable organization that delivers employment, newcomer, language and youth services. Through a number of different programs, initiatives and personalized services, Achēv supports career development, language education and settlement success in our communities. We also work collaboratively with employer and community partners to ensure that they have the tools and capacity to support others. Our vision at Achēv is to change people’s lives as they discover their potential and achieve their purpose. A significant focus of this vision is changing the lives of newcomers and impacting them in a positive manner.

Achēv is a human capital development organization. We optimize the dynamic relationship between our people, processes and technology, enabling communities to thrive, businesses to succeed, and individuals to prosper.

The TRIEC Mentoring Partnership

The TRIEC Mentoring Partnership is a program that aims to support newcomers in their settlement and job searching journey in Canada, as they try to reconnect with their profession. Newcomers are connected and partnered with an industry professional in Canada who is from their occupation. As the name of the program suggests, this partnership is so that the newcomer can be mentored by the industry professional for a period of time. The purpose of this mentoring partnership is for the newcomer to have the support and guidance of a working professional in their field/occupation, as they go about the process of trying to reconnect with that field and attain their employment goals. Through the program, newcomers can expect to gain valuable resources and insight that can help them get a head start on their journey to success in Canada.

Learn more about the program here: https://achev.ca/service/mentoring-program/

Partnerships

The TRIEC Mentoring Partnership program is managed by TRIEC—The Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council. Achēv is one of TRIEC’s 12 Community Partners to deliver the program to the community. Newcomers are assigned a Mentoring Coach in the program who is their main point of contact for everything related to the program. The Mentoring Coach is there to support them with things such as providing them with information about the program, registration, searching for their mentor, addressing general questions/concerns and more. Mentoring Coaches are there to provide newcomers with the individualized support they need as they move through the program.

Another partnership that TRIEC has that is key to this program is the partnership with Employer Partners. Employer Partners offer mentoring as a professional development opportunity for their staff, significantly boosting the number of mentors who enter the program. Employer Partners and the mentors they provide, range in industry and sector including healthcare, finance and IT, just to name a few. Partnerships can also be made with individual mentors who may not necessarily be associated with one of our Employer Partners, but who are interested in mentoring a newcomer through the program. Our mentors are key to directly supporting newcomers in the program and helping them with achieving success.

Employment: A key social determinant of mental health

Employment can so often be something that impacts many areas of our lives. It can give us financial stability, a feeling of belongingness and a path to pursue our goals, just to name a few. All of these concepts can be linked to the condition of one’s mental health. Achēv and the TRIEC Mentoring Partnership aims to support newcomers on their employment journey in Canada to achieve their goals and thereby improve their overall wellbeing as new members of Canadian society.

National Newcomer Navigation Network

Location:  National

Quick Facts

• Audience: Health, settlement and social sectors
• Population of Interest: Immigrant and refugee populations
• The Need:   Newcomers to Canada face numerous systemic barriers to accessing optimal healthcare due to various social determinants of health such as language, precarious employment and financial stresses.  Professionals struggle to know how to adapt their approach to optimize the care and outcomes for newcomer clients and patients.
• What's Promising:  The National Newcomer Navigation Network (N4) provides the first intersectoral platform for newcomer serving professionals.   N4 provides a one-stop platform for professional development, education, virtual discussions, networking, and sharing of data and resources. Designed   for the health, settlement, social and educational sectors, it supports inter-sectoral collaboration through opportunities to identify colleagues, share diverse expertise across different disciplines, access e-learning and resources, and contribute to working groups aimed at the development and promotion of leading and best practices with newcomers.   Membership is free.
• Key Takeaway:  N4 is a dynamic national platform for professionals serving newcomers to connect, learn and collaborate around system navigation. It offers:
  
  - Live and recorded webinars given by subject matter experts
  - Curated on-line learning
  - Sponsorship to a university level micro-certificate program in newcomer navigation
  - Discussion forum to connect with peers across Canada from health, social and education sectors
  - Curated data and resources to inform and support your practice
  - Working groups to address common issues facing newcomers

Background

Though one in five Canadians were born outside Canada and can face many barriers to receiving care or services, they are often overlooked as needing help to navigate our systems.  Indeed, in Ontario, Public Health reported them as twice as likely to test positive for COVID-19 due to factors such as language barriers, housing and being hyper-represented in public-facing jobs.  Some were also We also see them as victims of the recent rise in hate crimes.

A national needs assessment showed that newcomer serving professionals have many innovative practices which remain in sectoral or geographical silos resulting in both gaps and duplication in their desired knowledge.  In addition, there are barriers in knowledge translation which impede evidence based and culturally safe practices from being adopted into frontline practices.  Ultimately, newcomer experience inequities when accessing and experiencing health and social services.

How did the initiative come about?

In 2017, CHEO documented newcomer navigation experiences in a website called Simplifying the Journey. The intent of the website was to help hospitals and other healthcare organizations determine if a newcomer navigation program would be beneficial for their clients/patients and how to develop and maintain such a program. Based on this success, in 2019 CHEO was funded by IRCC to develop N4.

What are the services offered?

Education

Webinars
N4 webinars feature subject matter experts in the most current and sought out topics. The webinars are offered live for interactive exchanges, as well as being recorded to view at your convenience.  Following the webinar, the conversations with the subject matter experts and members continue in our platform’s virtual Meeting Place.  Certificates of attendance are offered to support your need for professional development hours.

Online learning
Our learning contributors’ webinars, videos, and short learning vignettes have been curated to enhance your professional development through the online portal on the N4 website.   N4 also provides you with a convenient tool to assist with tracking your professional development hours.

Newcomer Navigation Online Program :
N4 sponsors professionals to obtain a Certificate in Ethics and Contemporary Social Issues: Immigration and Integration co-designed with and offered by its educational partner; the School of Ethics, Social Justice and Public Service at St. Paul University.  This program assists established health and social service newcomer serving professionals to further develop their expertise in the knowledge and skills necessary to support new Canadians.  St. Paul's, affiliated with the University of Ottawa, is a bilingual university specializing in the humanities and social sciences. This 12-month online program consists of eight consecutive courses and two practicums in the participant's current organization.

Conferences & Pop-up Events
N4 hosts in-person and virtual events to support networking, platforms for knowledge exchange, and to help advance research in this field. All events are free of charge and will include subject matter expert presentations.

Collaboration

Discussion Forum
The N4 platform hosts a moderated discussion forum where professionals from across Canada can connect to ask questions, share resources, and develop solutions to their common challenges.

Data and Resource Toolkit
The database provides simplified, searchable data on immigration and practices in newcomer service organizations at a local and national context. The data is drawn from both publicly available data and data provided by members. In addition, N4 members share tools and resources to facilitate professional practice with newcomers.

Community of Practice
The CoP is based on the Ottawa Hospital model, which brings together working groups for defined periods of time, with N4’s support, to obtain their results-focused objectives to address a common challenge in service provision to newcomers.

What impact does this initiative have on the mental health of immigrants and refugees?

The overall goal of N4 is to promote best practices in the field of newcomer navigation with the ultimate goal of improving the experience and health outcomes of new Canadians. You can view our welcome video and some examples these practices here.

To access this promising practice, visit:
www.newcomernavigation.ca

Landing and Settling Program at Global Gathering Place 

Location:  Saskatoon, SK

Quick Facts

• Audience: Settlement sector
• Population of Interest: Immigrant and refugee populations
• The Need:  The unique stressors experienced by refugees and immigrants can have a significant impact on mental health, and often, it may feel like they are alone in these experiences.
• What's Promising:  While mental health support may certainly help, refugees and immigrants hold a spectrum of ideas (and even stigma) about services like counselling. To overcome this barrier, Landing and Settling takes a gentle approach, providing space to process the successes and challenges of life in Canada.
• Key Takeaway:  Bringing together clients with intersecting stories and common goals is powerful. Even if initially some participants may be shy to speak, they find value in meeting other newcomers who “get it,” and in hearing their own experiences reflected in others’ stories.

Global Gathering Place (GGP) recognizes there is power in the realization that you’re not alone. The unique stressors experienced by refugees and immigrants can have a significant impact on mental health. Being able to share these experiences and have them normalized by others going through similar challenges can be incredibly beneficial. GGP’s Landing and Settling program brings newcomers together for peer support and learnings that help navigate their new life.

Through weekly group sessions, clients benefit from social interaction and are guided to build on their inherent resilience while supporting one another in their journeys. Each session has three parts: stress management, participant-led discussion, and introducing a coping strategy that helps participants decompress after heavy discussions, and at home.

When newcomers join the program, they are grappling with myriad losses, having left the life they knew behind. They have hopes of rebuilding anew but can feel overwhelmed at the prospect. While mental health support may certainly help, refugees and immigrants hold a spectrum of ideas (and even stigma) about services like counselling. To overcome this barrier, Landing and Settling takes a gentle approach, providing space to process the successes and challenges of life in Canada.

Bringing together clients with intersecting stories and common goals is powerful. Even if initially some participants may be shy to speak, they find value in meeting other newcomers who “get it,” and in hearing their own experiences reflected in others’ stories. Recently, a Landing and Settling participant who has been in Canada for nine months spoke about their settlement experiences. The speaker felt empowered by sharing, and newer participants listening gained much-needed information they could use to deal with similar challenges.

In their home countries, many clients had jobs, friends, and the comfort of familiar places. Landing and Settling participants often talk about feeling isolated and lonely in Canada, particularly during the pandemic when meeting people and joining activities can seem impossible. Clients also express feeling a lot of stress to be “perfect” and fit in right away. Lack of confidence in communication skills is common.

Participants will say things like, “My English isn’t good enough. I feel like Canadians won’t understand me or will get frustrated that I talk too slow,” when in fact they’re speaking very clearly. So, we frequently discuss the stress of perfection and practicing patience and self-acceptance.

Through the program, participants begin building a new social identity and confidence. One participant shared that “the group has been very helpful for me in getting my confidence back. In my home country I feel like I had all the confidence but now I feel like I am getting more strength and confidence to handle many situations in my life in Canada.”

Landing and Settling also helps clients feel more connected to their new community by sharing resources. Participants learn about GGP’s calendar of programs and other local services that provide accessible opportunities to be active and social.

Each session highlights how incredibly resilient and driven newcomers are. Together we learn that it’s okay to not be okay, stress is inevitable, and that reaching out for support is valid and important. These takeaways and strategies help refugees and immigrants care for their mental health during major transitions, and for the rest of their lives.

Landing and Settling is supported by United Way of Saskatoon and Area and we are deeply grateful for their continued partnership.

Women Exchanging Life Lessons (WELL) at Global Gathering Place 

Location:  Saskatoon, SK

Quick Facts

• Audience: Settlement sector
• Population of Interest: Immigrant and refugee women
• The Need:  Although many immigrants are often healthy upon arrival to Canada, as months go by, there is often a decline in physical and mental health. Since arriving, many newcomers express their underutilization of health services.
• What's Promising:  WELL provides a space for newcomer women to build health literacy and strengthen health supports.
• Key Takeaway: Beyond getting information from health experts from local organizations, WELL also offers participants the opportunity to share their own experiences and knowledge around health and wellness.

Newcomer women build health literacy and strengthen health supports through WELL.

A woman named Shabina lands in Saskatoon with her husband and child. Although Shabina is very healthy upon arrival from Bangladesh, as months go by, she and her family are feeling more run-down. Their diets have changed, the weather makes it hard to be active, and while Shabina generally feels fine, it’s been stressful to adapt to a new country far away from loved ones. Since arriving, no one in the family has gotten a checkup, and a few weeks ago her son started complaining about tooth pain.

Shabina starts attending Women Exchanging Life Lessons (WELL) at Global Gathering Place, where every week she and other newcomer women learn about a different health topic from guest speakers. Participants learn how to find a family doctor or dentist, which services are available for free through their health cards, as well as key health topics like exercise, mental health, self-care, and diabetes.

Through WELL, participants like Shabina gain a heightened awareness of their health, and start building a referral network of information and resources. While discussing health risks, Shabina starts to realize how much her health has been affected through the transition to Canada. By attending the sessions, Shabina and other participants learn practical ways to address challenges early, for their own health and the health of their family members.

Beyond getting information from health experts from local organizations, WELL also offers participants the opportunity to share their own experiences and knowledge around health and wellness. These weekly conversations are a huge source of connection and empowerment as newcomer women realize they are not alone in their struggles and concerns.

During the pandemic, WELL began to meet online, which has both advantages and drawbacks. On one hand, online sessions are more accessible to women without transportation, and mothers of young children often appreciate being able to listen and learn while keeping an eye on little ones.

On the other hand, meeting online doesn’t provide the same experience of getting away for a couple of hours of “me time”—being in a peaceful space, sharing a pot of tea and spontaneous conversations with other women. Not seeing each other in person has made it harder to build close friendships too, so we’ve been offering safe in-person activities (such as walking and snowshoeing) whenever possible. These opportunities make a world of difference for newcomers to build a healthy life in Canada.

BrightStart! supports mental health and wellbeing for mothers and preschool-aged children 

Location:  Saskatoon, SK

Quick Facts

• Audience:  Settlement workers
• Population of Interest: Newcomer mothers and preschool-aged newcomer children
• The Need:  Immigrant and refugee mothers expressed feelings of isolation and of being overwhelmed, which was exasperated by the pandemic.
• What's Promising:  BrightStart! allows immigrant and refugee mothers and children to feel a part of community – by providing a virtual safe space to connect, play and learn from one another.
• Key Takeaway:  This program introduces new themes and activities each week, that are designed to meet the unique needs of both the mother and the child.
•  
• Being a mom isn’t easy in the best of times, and during Covid-19 it’s a heroic feat. For newcomers, staying home with small children and living in an unfamiliar area without a support network can take a toll on mental health and family dynamics.

In Saskatoon, Global Gathering Place’s BrightStart! program interrupts isolation and feelings of being overwhelmed for vulnerable immigrant and refugee mothers and their preschool-aged children. It’s a reprieve from daily stressors and a safe place to connect, play, and learn from one another. When the pandemic began, clients told us they needed the program more than ever. Over the months our virtual sessions have welcomed many new participants, including dads who occasionally drop-in.

Each week has a different theme that inspires new vocabulary and activities, and stories. In addition, facilitators drop off craft supplies to participants’ homes so everyone can work together to create fun projects. Special guest speakers share information related to nutrition, health, and child development. Mothers practise English, build new parenting skills, socialize, and learn about community resources that fit their specific needs. Many children experience important “firsts” in BrightStart!—their first time with group interactions, first time playing with other children (often an emotional sight for mom!), and first time learning key skills that help prepare them for school.

Being with other newcomer mothers and building a network of support fosters a sense of community. The impact on mothers, children, and their family’s future in Canada cannot be fully measured, though we know it’s significant. At one session, a mother shared that she was going through a major depression because she felt so isolated. Having a weekly opportunity to socialize and learn about her new community was a game-changer. She began participating in other local programs and continued to get together with friends she met at BrightStart!.

As the pandemic continues to strain the mental health of clients and their families, we remain committed to helping newcomers feel welcomed, informed and connected. Here’s a recent quote from a BrightStart! participant:

“Because of Covid we do not go to participate in any programs. But, the BrightStart! program makes our kids happy & joy in this pandemic situation too. I feel this is an educated, mind-blowing, stress release family fun program!! The connection between our kids & the program is a joyful journey!!”

OCASI – The Accessibility Initiative 

Location:  Ontario

Quick Facts

• Audience: Settlement sector
• Population of Interest: Newcomers with in/visible disabilities and deaf newcomers
• The Need:  There was an existing gap between the settlement and disability sectors when it came to providing appropriate, accessible and equitable services to newcomers with disabilities and Deaf newcomers.
• What's Promising:  The Accessibility Initiative is representative of the collaboration of both settlement and disability sectors working together to reduce barriers to holistic settlement services.
• Key Takeaway:  The following are identified as key components of service provision for newcomers with in/visible disabilities and deaf newcomer 1) Establishing needs 2) Beginning strategies 3) Person-centered approach 4) Building trust 5) Inclusive communication and practices

The Accessibility Initiative (AI) is a national bilingual project that aims to enhance the knowledge and skills of settlement sector professionals so that they are better equipped to serve newcomers with in/visible disabilities and Deaf newcomers. Through this initiative, settlement sector employees learn more about immigrants and refugees with disabilities and Deaf newcomers and their diversities; gain a greater understanding of the different legislations that exist internationally, nationally, provincially/territorially as it relates to the rights of people with disabilities; examine the relationship between disability, race, immigrant/refugee status and other layers of marginalization

The project aims to strengthen the sector's capacity to assist newcomers with both visible and invisible disabilities and Deaf newcomers by;

• Building strategic partnerships & relationships.
•  Providing self-directed online courses in English and French.
• Providing webinars for front line settlement sector professionals and management in English and French.
• Creating an online national discussion group that fosters community interaction and discussions to share and exchange knowledge, expertise, and solve issues regarding service delivery to newcomers with both visible and invisible disabilities.Recruiting 'Allies in Accessibility' (AiA) across Canada with the aim of assembling a wide group of individuals who have an interest in creating accessible workplaces.

The Accessibility Initiative was created in April 2011 as a result of a partnership between OCASI and the Ethno Racial Disability Coalition of Ontario (ERDCO). This two-year (2011-2013) project (funded by Citizenship and Immigration Canada) addressed the need to bridge the gap between the settlement and disability sectors when it came to providing appropriate, accessible and equitable services to newcomers with disabilities and Deaf newcomers. The project is representative of the collaboration of both settlement and disability sectors working together to reduce barriers to holistic settlement services.

Since its inception, we have trained thousands of sector employees, from management, board of directors, to frontline staff and volunteers. The project has received two awards: One for being a “Best Practice” from the Canadian Race Relations Foundation in 2014, and the second for a “Leader in Accessibility” award through the David C. Onley Award program. Moreover, as a result of its success and impact on the sector, the Accessibility Initiative’s scope was extended to a National lens, since April 2020.

The Accessibility Initiative addresses the mental health of newcomers by supporting the settlement sector building positive, welcoming and accessible spaces for them while receiving services.  This is done through our training(s) which strengthen the knowledge of the sector as it relates to mental health and emphasize on the impact of mental health issues faced by newcomers, while navigating settling in Canada. Furthermore, the trainings highlight the effect of stigma and bias experienced by newcomers with in/visible disabilities and Deaf newcomers when seeking settlement services and provides tools and best practices on how to best address the needs of this vulnerable clientele.

Additionally, our Allies in Accessibility program provides community and peer support to newcomers with disabilities and Deaf newcomers, which help break down feelings of isolation and provide a safe space for newcomers to talk about their challenges and receive adequate support.

As the Accessibility Initiative has been around for almost 10 years now, we have built partnerships and coalitions in both the disability sector and the immigrant and refugee serving sector. In the beginning, we partnered with the Ethno Racial Disability Coalition of Ontario (ERDCO), which helped bring both the disability sector and the immigrant and refugee serving sector together in a joint endeavour to better serve newcomers with in/visible disabilities and Deaf newcomers. Through the years, we have also partnered with several organizations to spread awareness on barriers faced by this vulnerable population, created several resources and tools, and hosted awareness events such as roundtables and conferences to support newcomers with in/visible disabilities and deaf newcomers.

These partnerships are crucial to the work we do and the work that needs to be done, as we often function in silos in the different sectors, to the detriment of the clients we all serve. The partnerships have given us, and both sectors, the opportunity to work together through not only referral-based services, but through knowledge exchanges, resource creation and sharing, and much more.

Key takeaways

• Establishing needs: determine why they have come to your agency and what they need and want. While many may be clear about what they need, some may not. It is your job to show newcomers how to secure the things they need and what their options may be
•  Beginning strategies: Right from the onset of the service process, newcomers with disabilities may have many obstacles in physically getting to your agency (e.g., transportation, environmental, technological barriers, etc.). You may consider offering home visits. An effective outreach strategy would be required to communicate this option to isolated newcomers with in/visible disabilities especially in rural communities.
• Person-centred approach: It is critical to use a service user/participant-centered strategy with all newcomers rather than the “cookie cutter” approach, as there may be more services and support available to them than they are aware of or know they are entitled to. Remember that one of the keys to being service user/participant centered is regularly reflecting on your biases and how they might impact services you provide.
• Building trust: It is important that a person chooses to self-disclose their disability specific needs and barriers they’re experiencing. For people with invisible disabilities, such as mental health challenges/needs, there is a stigma that they have to deal with on a day-to-day basis. It is important for us to be aware of the stigma and provide service users with the space to communicate their wants and needs. Being non-judgemental and non-labelling helps to build trust.
• Inclusive communication and practices: People have varying ways of communicating. Avoid making assumptions about how someone communicates with you, especially if it is not something you are used to. Ask service users the best way to communicate with them. Furthermore, language has the ability to welcome and open doors for everyone. When working in the non-profit sector, we need to be aware that words can also keep people out. Regardless of what language we use, communicate using plain language to ensure our services are accessible and inclusive to as many people as possible.

Download the Accessibility Toolkit here!

Program resources

Handouts for Managers
Handouts for Sector Employees