As B.C. moves towards easing some COVID-19 restrictions, YES has been working to safely increase its in-person service delivery capacity by creating program guidelines that are based on provincial and federal recommendations. In additional to strict cleaning protocols, all programs will now require staff and youth to wear masks if physical distancing cannot be maintained in a program. YES will have masks available at each site for clients if they do not have their own.
Starting June 10th, programs will now be offering the following modified service delivery:
Individual Counselling Programs which include Life Skills, Supported Independent Living (SIL), Outreach and the Youth and Family Outreach Support Counsellor
A rotation of counsellors will be available in office for scheduled physically distanced in person appointments and available by phone at 250-383-3514. Counsellors will be in the office Monday-Friday 9:00am -5:00pm. At the same time a separate rotation of counsellors will be available for outreach and community appointments in a physically distanced manner.
Individual Counselling Program: Youth and Family Support Services (YFSS) located in the Kiwanis Emergency Youth Shelter
YFSS will return to the office on July 1st, 2020 for physically distanced in-person appointments.
Drop-In Services: Alliance Club
The Alliance Club will be open Monday-Thursday 10:00am-6:00pm and on Fridays from 10:00am-2:00pm. Four youth will be able to access the space at one time for up to one hour. Computer stations will be set up and spaced out to provide enough room for physical distancing.
Services that will be offered include:
- Computer Access
- Meals/Snacks – using disposable cutlery & containers only.
- Showers/Bathroom/Laundry
- Youth Storage – available as needed.
- Clothing/Hygiene Products – available upon request
- One-on-one crisis counselling as needed
- Art Supplies
Residential Programs: Kiwanis Emergency Youth Shelter (KEYS) and Specialized Youth Detox (SYD)
Both KEYS and SYD will continue to limit the number of youth in programs to best follow the guidelines set out by the BC CDC. This has been done to ensure adequate physical distancing between clients and staff and allows the program to provide an area to isolate youth if they are showing symptoms. Both programs continue to utilize the BC CDC COVID-19 self assessment tool when a youth is referred to services.
SYD will be prioritizing higher risk youth due to the limited capacity, however youth detoxing from all substances and from all communities will be considered for a medical screen and intake. Youth can self-refer, or their supports can refer by calling YES’s main office 250-383-3514 for the Intake Coordinator’s phone number.
If you have questions regarding service delivery in a program, please reach out to program managers for further information:
Pat Griffin, Executive Director: pat.griffin@vyes.ca
Julie-Ann Hunter, Programs Manager: programs_manager@vyes.ca
Qionna Fyfe, Specialized Youth Detox Manager: syd_manager@vyes.ca
Thea Pichurski, Kiwanis Emergency Youth Shelter Manager: keys_manager@vyes.ca
As this situation continues to evolve, we are relying on health services including Public Health Agency of Canada, and the BC Center for Disease Control (BC CDC) for information and will be updating the community as service delivery changes occur.