Children in Saskatoon were waiting about two years to see a child psychiatrist, while children in Regina only waited three or four months. The head of the University of Saskatchewan’s child and adolescent psychiatry division says that, given the shortage of child and adolescent psychiatrists, health authorities and governments need to be smarter about how they treat mental health. In Regina, families can go to a mental health clinic and meet an intake worker who helps set their child with appropriate care. This can include a social worker, counsellor or psychologist and only severe cases are referred to child and adolescent psychiatrists. To solve the problem in Saskatchewan, the health authority hired a triage nurse to call the family of every person on the wait list and conduct interviews to assess the severity of the concern. She discusses the case with child and adolescent psychiatrists and decides whether the child should remain on the wait list to see a child and adolescent psychiatrist or be connected with another mental health professional. Since then, wait times dropped to between 14 and 16 months in the last six months.
NBHC Care Experience