New youth mental health treatment centre given funding

New Brunswicks former child and youth advocate is supporting the provincial governments decision to set aside $1.3 million for a new centre for youth suffering from mental illness.

Bernard Richard, who is the chair of Dots NB, which is a charity for youth mental health, has been lobbying for many years for a facility that would help youth struggling with mental health issues.

I've met many, many youth and certainly spoken to moms and dads struggling to get the kinds of services they think their kids need, Richard said

One mom really said it all to me when she said, I wish my daughter had cancer instead of schizophreniabecause if she had cancer, the whole community would have rallied to support her.

Health Minister Victor Boudreau released his departments capital estimates last week, which included funds to start working on the new facility.

Richard said the full cost of the youth mental health centre will be closer to $10 million.

As the child and youth advocate, Richard co-authored a report a few years ago that suggested its location should be Moncton, so that it would also be accessible to youth from Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia.