Kelowna Unit Provides Highest Level of Care for Youth with Mental Illness
(L-R) David Haiwronsky, Connie Melnyk, and Dr. Michael Ocana are part of the team at Interior Health's Adolescent Psychiatric Unit.
I
t is 11 a.m. and Occupational Therapist Tara Walters is busy pulling items from the cupboards of the clean, bright kitchen. She’ll be helping youth in Kelowna General’s Adolescent Psychiatric Unit make their own pizzas today, along with homemade Caesar salad.
The meals, prepared as a group, are healthy in more ways than nutrition alone. By participating in meal preparation and eating together as a group, these young cooks are learning life skills and developing important social skills. Nobody would argue that life as a teenager can be tough, but for these teens managing home life, school work, and relationships, is an overwhelming struggle. They have complex mental disorders. Some are house bound due to agoraphobia (anxiety disorder), while others are at risk of suicide or self harm. Some are out of contact with reality or have severe mood disorders. In B.C., about one in seven young people will have some form of mental disorder at any given time. Effective support is critical because most mental disorders (about 70 per cent) surface before the age of 18. The Adolescent Psychiatric Unit (APU) at KGH is one of five tertiary mental health programs for young people in the province. The eight-bed inpatient unit serves those aged 12 to 17 within Interior Health. “I had a hard time opening up about depression and anxiety,” says 20-year old Tyler Exner, who spent four weeks at the APU when he was 16. (cont’d on p. 12)