Youth Substance Use Services
Our Youth Substance Use Services aim to increase wellness and decrease substance related harms for youth and caregivers by connecting them with the right service at the right time. Our Youth Substance Use Services are designed for youth aged 12-24 with some programs focusing on priority ages.
- Call 310-MHSU (6478) to reach your local Mental Health & Substance Use (MHSU) Centre or
- Connect with Access MHSU Services for more information and links to services to best meet your needs or
- Work with your primary care practitioner (family doctor/nurse practitioner) to connect to services
- Our Substance Use Services for YOUTH Snap Shot (linear diagram) contains clickable links. Click a link to see the service description and a list of MHSU Centres offering the service.
- View these suicide phone line resources
If you are wondering whether experimental, social or recreational substance use is becoming problematic for you or someone you know, these resources may help.
- Substance Use & Youth developed by Kelty Mental Health Resource Centre
- Substance Use Information Foundry BC offers youth health and wellness resources, services and supports
- Help Lines Fact Sheet contains links to trustworthy help lines
- Mobile Apps/Virtual Treatment Fact Sheet provides a list of virtual/online supports
- PreVenture is a school based substance use prevention program. Ask if PreVenture is available at your school.
- School Based/Youth Outreach Services are provided by substance use counsellors in select high schools and communities
Easy to access services to meet you where you are at, when you are ready.
- Supervised Consumption / Overdose Prevention Services for ages 16+ (service listings and locations)
- Overdose Prevention & Treatment Watch our service videos, get drug alerts by text, learn about the naloxone program, drug checking and the lifeguard app
- Harm Reduction get information on harm reduction supplies, drug checking, stigma reduction
These services help connect you to supports in your community when you are experiencing a mental health or substance use crisis.
- Substance Use Connections
- Addiction Medicine Consultation Services
- Integrated Crisis Response Teams respond to mental health or substance use (MHSU) emergencies in Kamloops, Vernon, Kelowna and Penticton. Our MHSU clinicians are partnered with a specially trained RCMP officer to help connect you to the services you need to keep you safe.
Our Community Based Services provide individual and group counselling, family support and integration, youth case management or day treatment programs in the community, depending on participant needs.
These services may be a fit when community based services, such as the Community Based Services listed above, cannot meet your treatment goals.
- Withdrawal Management Services (Detox): Provides you with medically supported services through the acute stages of withdrawal from alcohol or other substances in a live-in setting.
- Youth Treatment Beds: Provides you with a structured, live-in program where your treatment goals are supported through assessment, evidence-based treatment and skill building.
For a complete list of beds available to Interior Health youth see our list of Bed-Based Services.
The Interior region is home to the traditional, ancestral and unceded territories of the Tŝilhqot’in, Secwépemc, Dãkelh Dené, St’át’imc, syilx, Nlaka’pamux, and Ktunaxa Nations, comprised of 54 First Nations Communities. View our map of Bed-Based Services locations within the interior region.
Youth Substance Use Resources
Call a crisis line for immediate assistance (24/7 unless indicated):
- Kids Help Phone - 1-800-668-6868
- Interior Crisis Line Network - 1-888-353-2273 or 1-800-784-2433
- Suicide Crisis Helpline - 988
- KUU-US (Indigenous) Crisis Line- 1-800-588-8717
- Métis Crisis Line- 1-833-638-4722
- Youth In BC Chat - Noon-1 a.m., 7days/week
- Foundry Phone & Online Chat Support - 1:15-7:15 p.m. 7 days/week
- Helpline for Children - 310-1234
- Our Child and Youth Mental Health & Substance Use (MHSU) Service Directory contains a list of key service providers in the interior region. This resource will help you easily find services in your area.
- Our Youth Harm Reduction Toolkit is designed for service providers. It contains resources on overdose response, substances and harm reduction that may be of interest to youth.
Read blog posts, watch videos and listen to youth with lived experiences speak about IH's services, substance use, recovery, stigma and more. Peers Brynn and Hayden (not their real names) teamed up with us to create SAY - Services Available for Youth.
Sahra joined IH just two months after graduating from Okanagan College, and has served in many roles with IH that led her to where she is today.
/stories/we-are-ih-recruitment-advisor-finds-purpose-growing-careers
Interior Health has non-judgmental drug checking services throughout the Interior region. Samples as small as a grain of rice can be tested.
/stories/stop-guessing-drug-checking-saves-lives
Lillooet Hospital holds a special place in Jessica McLellan's heart. A 3rd-generation resident of Lillooet, she has served as LDHF's chair since 2018.
/stories/foundation-spotlight-series-lillooet-district-hospital-foundation
Righting wrongs gives Sharon a sense of purpose at work. There is no typical day in labour relations which makes the job exciting and a great fit for her.
/stories/we-are-ih-labour-relations-specialist-strengthens-relationships
Many of us embrace our 50s and 60s as an opportunity for adventure. Even if you’re feeling healthy now, it’s a good idea to plan your future health decisions.
/stories/six-ways-plan-age-related-health-decisions
Like many expectant moms, Emily Canzian attended prenatal classes and did a lot of preparing for her son Luca’s birth.
/stories/new-moms-journey-through-first-days-breastfeeding
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