{"id":138942,"date":"2026-05-14T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/refletnews.ca\/?p=138942"},"modified":"2026-05-13T13:37:34","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T17:37:34","slug":"brava-program-expands-mental-health-services-for-youth-and-families-across-the-region","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/refletnews.ca\/en\/news\/brava-program-expands-mental-health-services-for-youth-and-families-across-the-region\/","title":{"rendered":"BRAVA Program expands mental health services for youth and families across the region"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Representatives from Valoris for Children and Adults of Prescott and Russell and the Children\u2019s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) Research Institute have announced a collaboration to support the implementation of a program designed to support youth and their families struggling with mental health.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Building Resilience and Attachment in Vulnerable Adolescents (BRAVA) is a program designed for adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 who are experiencing suicidal ideation and their parents or caregivers. The BRAVA program addresses an urgent need in the community by providing faster, more timely access to mental health services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBy investing in initiatives like BRAVA, we are investing in the potential of our youth, in the strengthening of families and the overall health of our communities,\u201d said Caroline Granger, Executive Director, Valoris for Children and Adults of Prescott and Russell. \u201cAccess to services should never depend on the language you speak, your place of residence or the ability to navigate complex systems.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The BRAVA program is being expanded into the region of Prescott and Russell courtesy of a significant contribution from Health Canada through the Youth Mental Health Fund totalling of $902,769 will allow Valoris to increase the capacity of its youth mental health team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen a young person is struggling, the entire family needs support and resources,\u201d said Prescott-Russell-Cumberland Member of Parliament (MP) Giovanna Mingarelli. \u201cAccess doesn\u2019t just mean that the program exists. It means more such as whether a young person can understand the resources, trust them and feel safe with them. This program makes sure that support is closer to home by also providing caregivers and families the support they need. The resources will be mad available and the language of their choosing, so they don\u2019t have to go through any challenges alone.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The BRAVA program is offered in a six-week group format with rolling registration, allowing participants to join at any time without having to wait for a new group to begin. Adolescents and their parents or caregivers participate in separate groups, with the goal of strengthening family bonds and reducing suicidal ideation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTimely access to mental healthcare is essential especially for vulnerable youth and their caregivers and parents,\u201d said Dr. Allison Kennedy, who was one of three people at CHEO who launched the BRAVA program along with researchers Paula Cloutier and Clare Gray. \u201cWe have many young people and their families who continue to face long wait times for specialized services which often means the difficult choice of receiving care in a second language or waiting even longer to receive care and the language their comfortable with such as French.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Kennedy noted that in the early stages of BRAVA, in a randomized control trial, 99 youth and their caregivers were assigned to the program or enhanced treatment-as-usual (ETU), a control group design used in clinical research where the standard “usual care” is supplemented with additional features. During this period, researchers measured changes in suicidal ideation, anxiety, depression, and stress at intake, exit, and at a three-month follow-up. BRAVA participants showed improvements in anxiety, depression, and perceived stress compared to ETU, with suicidal ideation improvements maintained at the follow-up. Notably, youth participants in the program had significantly fewer emergency department (ED) visits during the study period, suggesting the program may help reduce acute care demand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have seen young people make meaningful progress when they have meaningful support,\u201d added Dr. Kennedy. \u201cCaregivers and parents are also equipped with what support they need so they can respond to what the young people are experiencing. The program allows youth to better understand and manage their emotions, navigate conflict more effectively and at the same time, caregivers are support by reflecting what their role is and lean practical strategies while connecting with others facing similar challenges.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The funding will also support the translation and validation of the BRAVA program into French, allowing it to be offered in both official languages. Valoris plans to offer the BRAVA program on an ongoing basis in both French and English across three regions of Prescott and Russell (in Rockland, Embrun and Hawkesbury) creating a new access point to youth mental health services within local communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhether we like it or not, when our kids suffer from mental health, we as parents, also suffer with them,\u201d said Clarence-Rockland Mayor Mario Zanth, who also serves as Warden for the United Counties of Prescott and Russell. \u201cThe younger generation is growing up in a changing world with more opportunities and challenges than before. And our youth need us now more than ever, and they need us to step up and offer meaningful support rather than just talking.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Representatives from Valoris for Children and Adults of Prescott and Russell and the Children\u2019s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) Research Institute have announced a collaboration to support the implementation of a program designed to support youth and their families struggling with mental health.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[61,72],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-138942","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","category-society"],"acf":[],"featured_media_global":[],"yoast_head":"\nBRAVA Program expands mental health services for youth and families across the region - Le Reflet \/ The News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Representatives from Valoris for Children and Adults of Prescott and Russell and the Children\u2019s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) Research Institute have announced a collaboration to support the implementation of a program designed to support youth and their families struggling with mental health.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/refletnews.ca\/en\/news\/brava-program-expands-mental-health-services-for-youth-and-families-across-the-region\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"BRAVA Program expands mental health services for youth and families across the region - 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