We are IH is a recognition campaign to spotlight Interior Health employees and medical staff – through pictures and stories.

Name: Eric Tommasini

Job Title: Physiotherapist

Years of Service: 6

Worksite: Royal Inland Hospital

Community: Kamloops

Ancestral Territory: Secwépemc

In the wake of a deadly rise in drug toxicity and overdoses, the care team at Vernon’s Downtown Mental Health and Substance Use Centre has been quietly saving lives.

An invaluable support for more than 900 Vernon residents, the centre helps with *harm reduction, health services and social supports. Since opening on May 12, 2020, more than 3,500 people have visited, and over 400 drug consumption events have been safely supervised, with zero deaths.

We are IH is a recognition campaign to spotlight Interior Health employees and medical staff – through pictures and stories.

Name: Amara Stangeland

Job Title: Registered Nurse, Adolescent Psychiatry

Years of Service: 2

Worksite: Kelowna General Hospital

Community: Kelowna

Ancestral Territory: Syilx (Saay-ilks) / Okanagan Interior Salish

COVID-19 has impacted each of us in many ways. One of the areas that we are monitoring closely is mental health. Mental health affects all of us.

As we mark the 70^th annual Mental Health Awareness Week I’d like to take this opportunity to recognize the toll that the ongoing pandemic is having on people’s feelings of stress, loneliness, and anxiety.