Mental wellness unit to open at Whitehorse hospital in June

Warning: The following story deals with suicide, depression and mental health issues. 

The Whitehorse hospital's mental wellness unit is opening next summer after several months' delay.

In an email to staff, the Yukon Hospital Corporation says the unit will open on June 3, 2025. 

The mental wellness unit has been under construction since June 2023. The new facility will have a First Nations healing room, private outdoor space and a kitchenette. It'll have eight beds with potential to expand to 12 beds.

The hospital corporation has pledged a more "holistic healing environment" than the Secure Medical Unit it's replacing, which has been widely condemned by psychiatrists and patients for lacking basic safety measures and failing to provide adequate in-patient care.

The latest internal email tells staff they can expect to receive non-violent crisis intervention and advanced safety skills training in the coming months. Personal safety devices and response procedures will also be introduced. 

It also says the hospital is planning culturally appropriate activities and the "Indigenization of policies to support revised workflow and processes."

The $29.8-million renovation was initially slated for completion in July 2024. 

"Over the last few months a number of construction, supply and building requirement issues have been mitigated to identify the first patient day," says the email signed by Karen Girling, projects director.

Yukon Party says patients are 'paying the price'

The opposition Yukon Party is accusing the Liberal government of indirectly causing the delay by underfunding the hospital. The party's health critic, Brad Cathers, points to an external financial management report on the 2022-23 fiscal year by accounting firm Ernst and Young. It showed the hospital corporation pulled capital funding tagged for the Mental Wellness Unit to meet payroll that year.

Cathers says Ernst and Young reported the hospital was suffering from chronic cash flow and operating shortfalls.

"We see across the board this continued underfunding of the needs, both operational and capital, at our Yukon hospitals — and unfortunately, Yukon patients are paying the price for that," Cathers said.

Health Minister Tracy-Anne McPhee was not available for an interview. The Yukon Hospital Corporation responded to CBC's interview requests with a forwarded copy of Girling's email.

Advocate points to lack of patient programming

Steve Hahn, a long-time advocate for improved mental health care in the territory, wonders why the hospital corporation didn't implement safety planning for staff before the unit was built.

"We don't need a facility to do that. We can train through the hospital. This is a slam dunk," Hahn said in an interview this week. "Other hospitals have it, and they don't wait for a bigger, newer, fresher-smelling unit to do it."

Hahn is a former paramedic who worked on the critical care medevac team at Yukon Emergency Medical Services for nearly a decade. Before that, he was an army medic and critical care nurse at hospitals in Vancouver and Calgary.

In 2011, Hahn left his job due to severe post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) — and found the Yukon's system was wholly unequipped to help him.

Hahn has been admitted to the Whitehorse hospital seven times in the last decade or so. He says he was repeatedly discharged without a plan or any efforts toward a diagnosis.

He once flew down south to be assessed for PTSD, only to find out that a social worker in Whitehorse had cancelled the appointment. He paid out of pocket for two in-patient programs outside the territory. He was eventually diagnosed with PTSD after two years of dogged advocacy.

"I think a lot of the pain, anguish, and some of the reluctance I now have in accessing care may have been mitigated," Hahn said. 

Looking at the public plans for the new mental wellness unit, Hahn doesn't see tangible strategies for improving patient outcomes. The new space is a good thing, he says, but it won't make a difference unless staff are trained to help people leave the unit.

"The aim of a short-term stay … is to plan for discharge from day one," Hahn said.

He says that means stabilizing patients who arrive acutely ill and then planning for their departure by teaching coping mechanisms and lining up community resources — even if few resources are available in the territory. He says there should be a care plan with daily programming that includes chores, showering and the activities of daily living. If they're not able to do those things, learning should become part of the plan, Hahn says.

The Yukon Hospital Corporation did not respond to a request asking whether internal plans for programming exist.

Seeking psychedelic therapy outside the territory

Hahn has had eight different psychiatrists in the Yukon. He's been warned his current medications could eventually stop working after 10 years of use. And he still experiences anger, insomnia, suicidal ideation and dissociative symptoms. 

"I asked myself … is this as good as it's going to get?" Hahn said.

The question spurred him to look for an alternative type of therapy. He found psychedelic medicine through an online community of veterans who experienced life-changing improvements in Mexico, where those treatments are legal.

Hahn has been planning this trip for over a year. He found a clinic that treats with ibogaine, a plant-based psychoactive drug found in some early studies to have positive effects on PTSD, addiction and other mental health issues. 

Once he was tentatively accepted as a patient, he put a call-out to the community and raised $15,000 in three days. He's planning to go in March.

"I'm actually feeling a sense of hope, something I haven't felt in probably a year-and-a-half," Hahn said.

He hopes the therapy will further alleviate his symptoms, so he can continue with his many pursuits beyond mental health advocacy. He's also spearheading a local chapter of a non-profit rescue organization with big plans for 2025. He runs "the smallest fly-fishing shop in the Yukon," and he would love to eventually serve as a first responder again.

"I have hope," Hahn said. "One just needs a little bit of help — and that's all I'm asking for."

The 9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline offers support to individuals experiencing suicidal thoughts in the Yukon. The Yukon government's Mental Wellness and Substance Use Services provides rapid access counselling within 3 days of your first call to 867-456-3838. The Yukon chapter of the Canadian Mental Health Association also provides free mental health support.