Support for kids

LISTEN UP!!!

So here’s something that’s been huge news in my workplace since the budget was released, but I haven’t seen much of anything about it in mainstream news and in reality many probably wouldn't have paid much attention to it anyways as RCSD is just a acronym that doesn't mean much to people. BUT this is going to be a big, big deal for anyone with kids and even those of you who don't.

Up until the budget was released, Alberta had a thing called Regional Collaborative Service Delivery model (RCSD), formerly ESHIP (Edmonton Student Health Initiative Partnership). This program started out way back in the day through Child and family services but then was picked up by Alberta health services. This was a model where different agencies worked together to provide services (mental health, speech pathology, occupational therapy, physical therapy, vision, auditory, etc ) to children and operated in the schools, meaning we are mobile and we see our clients during school hours and within a school setting. This is/was a provincially funded program that spans all over Alberta, rural and urban.

The RCSD model is now gone, and the money from it is going directly to school divisions; now they get to decide what they want to do with it. These are schools that are already facing terrible budget shortfalls.

I work in child and adolescent mental health as a therapist under RCSD providing therapy to kids in schools (k-12) and, as already stated, as of august 30, 2020 (when the contact expires) our program is defunded. I know people will just say "oh that's too bad" or "join the club" but honestly, what you're really saying is that it's fine your children or your friend's children or all those other kids out there won't have supports come Sept or whenever school starts again. You're saying it's fine that thousands of kids will go back post pandemic and worrying about the state of the world for multiple reasons, in addition to the previous mental health struggles they experienced. While clinics will still be open (with decreased capacity because RCSD also funds clinic spots), this now means parents (who actually have the ability and privilege to do so) will have to take time off work and drive their child to the clinic to see a therapist with increased wait list times and decreases service time. Also for perspectives sake, I have been in this role for the last 7 years and each year the number of kids we see increases and the complexities increase. On average, our team of 20ish mental health therapists in edmonton sees about 700-1000 kids in the school year - that is JUST in Edmonton and that is JUST the kids who require mental health support. This DOES NOT include the kids who get OT, speech, vision, auditory, etc.

Additionally for those that might say "well the money is going to the school boards to figure it out", it should be known that school boards only got 40% of the RCSD original budget - NOT EVEN HALF.

I would implore people to write to their MLAs and really anyone else in a place of power. This isn't just about jobs (we all have secondary and post graduate degrees), it's about the kids and the families who need help. It's about the low income families and the marginalized families. It's about the kids who struggle with speech and motor skills. It's about the kids who are deaf, or hard of hearing, and the visually impaired kids. It's about the families who can't add one more thing to their already over flowing plates. It's, honestly, about the future and overall well being of your kids!