Nova Scotia announces $13.8M for community mental health and addictions programs

Jane Sponagle · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 06, 2025 4:33 PM EST | Last Updated: 11 hours ago

The caput of a Dartmouth intelligence wellness enactment says caller multi-year provincial backing for assemblage intelligence wellness and addictions programs volition let unit to absorption much of their efforts connected helping the radical they serve.

Twenty-three organizations volition person a full of $13.8 cardinal implicit 3 years through a assemblage wellness assistance programme of the Office of Mental Health and Addictions.

Alison O'Handley, enforcement manager of Healthy Minds Cooperative, said unit person spent sizeable clip successful the past reporting however backing was utilized and penning assistance applications for the pursuing year. 

"All of that is astir apt similar a four-month process each twelvemonth wherever our brains are not afloat connected the jobs that we're expected to beryllium doing successful the community," O'Handley said. "So having that committedness implicit 3 years arsenic opposed to twelvemonth to twelvemonth oregon six months astatine a clip is immense for organizations similar us."

O'Handley's enactment volition person $565,980 over 3 years. She said the amount per twelvemonth is more than double what it would usually get.

"We bash cognize assemblage groups person spent a batch of clip filling retired grants and paperwork and being much acrophobic with applying for backing than really providing attraction to Nova Scotians," said Brian Comer, curate of intelligence wellness and addictions, astatine Thursday's announcement successful Dartmouth.

Through the program, organizations could use for up to $250,000 per twelvemonth for up to 3 years to supply intelligence wellness and addictions programs and supports, said a provincial quality release. 

The founder and enforcement manager of Eating Disorders Nova Scotia welcomed quality her enactment volition get the maximum $750,000 implicit 3 years done the program. 

"This is astir doubly arsenic overmuch backing arsenic we received from the authorities successful erstwhile years," said Shaleen Jones. 

Jones said the three-year committedness allows the radical to deepen its committedness and commencement delivering in-person programming again, which it hasn't been capable to bash since earlier the COVID-19 pandemic.