One in five Canadians will develop a mental illness in their lifetime.

Mental health and substance use illnesses are often silent, but they can affect people of any age or socio-economic background. And though their causes may be hidden, their effects are felt deeply throughout our social networks and our society.

An important step forward, Equipped to Heal is the first community fundraising campaign from the Victoria Hospitals Foundation solely dedicated to enhancing mental health and substance use services in our hospitals.

By creating a fundraiser through our Equipped to Heal Campaign, you can help fund a new level of care, the MHSU Sub-Acute Unit as well as specialized rehabilitation beds, medication dispensers, a treatment room and other high-priority needs to help reduce patient readmission. With this funding, our program, team, and facilities can continue to provide resources so patients can rest, heal, and recuperate.

The new MHSU Sub-Acute Unit at Royal Jubilee Hospital focuses on patient psychosocial rehabilitation for patients who are preparing to reintegrate into their community and return to their place of residence. Increasing psychiatric inpatient bed capacity, the unit aims to lessen hospital re-admission by preparing patients for discharge through recovery planning and community supports. Located in Eric Martin Pavilion, the unit began welcoming patients aged 1775 years old with a wide range of mental health and substance use disorders in March of 2021.

Our hospitals help people heal, but they need your help. Over 190,000 people turn to the mental health and substance use services in our Island hospitals each year, and existing MHSU beds are at capacity. The addition of the Sub-Acute Unit's 19 beds to the existing 55 MHSU beds at RJH will expand capacity by 35%.

Your fundraiser allows the opportunity to recognize the entire Mental Health team for their dedicated work and empowers them to help patients onto happier and healthier futures. With your help, we can put our hearts and minds together to equip our hospitals and caregivers to address this hidden health crisis.

On behalf of the Mental Health care teams, thank you so much for your donations and support. We are all truly grateful.

To learn more about Equipped to Heal please visit https://www.victoriahf.ca/equipped/.