Geometric pattern of mountains

Need help immediately?

If there is a life-threatening safety concern, please call 9-1-1 or go to the Emergency Department at your nearest hospital.

Suicide prevention hotline: 1-800-784-2433

BC Crisis Line: 604-310-6789

Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868

Indigenous Crisis and Support Line - KUU-US Crisis Support Line: 1-800-588-8717

Harm reduction: Toward the Heart 

Mental Health Teams provide community-based assessment and treatment to adults who are diagnosed with a major mental illness and experiencing significant problems that interfere with their functioning in daily life.

How to access

  • Check eligibility

    • Adults aged 19 and above with moderate to severe mental health, substance use, and concurrent mental health and substance use disorders or conditions.

    These services support people who typically experience all three of the following

    1. Mental health symptoms (with limited response to treatment) and/or substance use or related behaviours that are problematic.
    2. Significant functional difficulties with activities of daily living and/or significant risk to personal safety, housing, or the community due to their mental health and/or substance use disorder or condition.  

      This may include but does not require high emergency department use, frequent hospital admissions due to their mental health and/or substance use disorder or condition and/or conditions under the BC Mental Health Act.
    3. Financial, structural, health and/or social barriers (i.e. marginalization, stigma, inadequate housing, poverty, etc.) or other vulnerability that limits access to or requires higher intensity support (i.e. case management and psychiatry, assertive engagement) than what is typically provided by family physicians, private pay services and other community supports.

    If you have questions about whether these services are for you or your client, in some cases, people may be considered based on other factors. 

  • Get a referral

    Clients, families and health care providers can contact the Vancouver Access and Assessment Centre (AAC) for referrals.

    The AAC is a central point of access for all team services. The AAC can also help identify other services that may support the client.

Hours of operation

Currently open
  • Monday:   8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
  • Tuesday:   8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
  • Wednesday:   8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
  • Thursday:   8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
  • Friday:   8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
  • Saturday:   Closed
  • Sunday:   Closed

Vancouver Community MHSU Teams

This information describes what to expect if you're receiving service through a Vancouver community adult mental health and substance use team location. See details in the Vancouver Community Adult Mental Health and Substance Use Teams' Mandate.

Vancouver community adult mental health and substance use (MHSU) teams are designed to be neighbourhood-based in order to encourage collaboration and partnerships with local community services, including family physicians and other care providers. Clients and families can access a range of integrated mental health, substance use, or both mental health and substance use services.

These mental health and substance use services can include individual sessions, group programs, clinic-based appointments, virtual appointments and outreach, and are available on a short or longer-term basis.

Team services support people to transition to other community-based supports, including family physicians and other care providers. At the time of transition from services, clients may have achieved some or all of their self-identified goals, which could include:

  • improved quality of life,
  • developed new skills,
  • reduced symptoms,
  • reduced substance use,
  • reduced self-stigma, and
  • increased independence, community connectedness, and engagement in meaningful activities.

What to expect with Vancouver Community MHSU team services

These mental health and substance use services are client-centered, goal-oriented, innovative, culturally safe, trauma-informed, involve families, and use psychosocial rehabilitation and harm reduction philosophy and practices. Clients have a choice of interventions and supports. Approaches to care are adaptable to suit a client’s needs. Care plans, interventions, and supports are regularly reviewed and updated.

Clients and families can expect respectful, compassionate and competent care. Teams collaborate with clients and families to build on strengths, knowledge and interests to foster hope, growth, and empowerment. Services are timely and flexible to address changing, urgent and unscheduled needs. Services can include individual sessions, group programs, clinic-based appointments, virtual appointments (phone or video), and outreach. Follow-up takes place when clients do not connect with the team as planned and there is an impact to safety or goals. Services may be offered on a short term (i.e., less than six months) or longer-term basis.

Services are team-based and a “most responsible clinician” (MRC) is assigned to each client based on their needs. The MRC will be the main point of contact, ensures services are coordinated and supports transitions into/out of team services, hospital services, and community services. There is always access to the MRC or back-up clinician during business hours. After hours support is provided through the Vancouver Access and Assessment Centre (AAC) from 7:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.

Service providers include:

  • case manager (registered nurse, registered psychiatric nurse, social worker, clinical counsellor, occupational therapist),
  • concurrent disorder clinician (social worker, clinical counsellor),
  • employment counsellors,
  • family support and involvement coordinator,
  • health care worker,
  • nurse who specializes in substance use medicine,
  • occupational therapist (OT),
  • peer worker,
  • physician who specialize in substance use medicine,
  • psychiatrist and
  • recreation therapist.

Goldcorp Centre for Mental Health (Northeast)

Offers a variety of mental health programs to the Vancouver community.

Adult Mental Health Teams

Community-based assessment and treatment for adults who are diagnosed with a serious and persistent major mental disorder and experiencing significant problems that interfere with their functioning in daily life.