About Us

Supporting young people with intensive mental health needs.

Young girl being consoled by counsellor.

Background

Creating a new pathway to treatment.

Addressing the significant gaps and lack of coordination in the system for live-in treatment has been a long-standing priority for the child and youth mental health sector. The OITP is a solution.

The OITP will create a coordinated model for children, youth and their families to access the right treatment at the right time, as close to home as possible.

The change will take time. This ultimately aims to address long-standing treatment gaps by increasing availability of evidence-based and specialized clinical treatment, improving equity of access and service outcomes, and optimizing existing investments while supporting innovative local approaches.

This work is guided by principles of equity, diversity and inclusion. The OITP supports an Indigenous-led parallel process, with a separate and distinct approach to preserve the autonomy and self-determination of Indigenous communities.

5

Ongoing Projects

50 +

Contributors

$12 m

To Intensive Providers

$22.9 m

Overall Funding

Our Vision

Ontario’s youth and young adults with serious mental illness have timely access to effective, inclusive, respectful, and individualized intensive treatment with family and community supports to enable their best futures.

Our Principles

Foundations of our work.

  • Child, youth and family centered
  • Fostering collaboration
  • Value for money
  • Tangible improvement in client outcomes
  • Evidence-informed decision-making and innovation
  • Identify and respect inter-dependencies
  • Build system not local resources
  • Striving for equity
  • Trust and transparency, effective conflict resolution
  • First step to a planful, efficient and effective system

Our Objectives

Goals for the future.

Equitable access

Reduced wait-times

Improved service quality

Better outcomes

Stronger resource alignment

Clear pathways

Our Objectives

Goals for the future.

Equitable access

Reduced wait-times

Improved service quality

Better outcomes

Stronger resource alignment

Clear pathways

Our Model

Regional Intensive Treatment Networks

At maturity, the OITP will have several regional intensive treatment networks (RITNs) across the province that support effective, community-based and evidence-informed treatment of children and youth with the most significant mental health needs.

The RITNs will add net new clinical capacity to address service gaps. They will do this by linking a range of required intensive services and establishing and maintaining clear clinical pathways into, through and out of the most intensive treatment. Through the identification of a hub and intensive services spokes, each RITN will plan and deliver treatment according to a consistent clinical model and common clinical and program standards.

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Our Structure

Guided by cross-sectoral contributors.

The OITP is guided by a Steering Committee that features representation from the Ministry of Health, Mental Health and Addiction Programs Branch, the Lead Agency Consortium, and the Knowledge Institute on Child and Youth Mental Health and Addictions. This committee leads the work to help the OITP build a solid foundation for the future and address long-standing service gaps in intensive live-in treatment for children and youth.

  • Mary Mannella – Ministry of Health; Co-Chair of Ontario Intensive Treatment Pathway
  • Kirsten Dougherty – Reach Out Centre for Kids, Co-Chair of Ontario Intensive Treatment Pathway and Co-Chair of Lead Agency Consortium
  • Brent Eisenkirch – Ministry of Health
  • David Willis – Keystone Child, Youth and Family Services, Co-Chair Lead Agency Consortium
  • Nicholas Watters – Knowledge Institute on Child and Youth Mental Health and Addictions
  • Ex-officio – Zoja Holman, OITP Acting Executive Leader

This committee offers advice on how to create alignment within the OITP and across the child and youth health system as well as other sectors in Ontario.

  • Cathy Paul (Chair) – Kinark Child and Family Services
  • Andrea Roberts – Hands TheFamilyHelpNetwork.ca
  • Diane Walker – Children’s Centre Thunder Bay
  • Janet McCrimmon – Strides Toronto
  • Kelly Simpson – Vanier Children’s Mental Wellness
  • Kirsten Dougherty – Reach Out Centre for Kids
  • Lori Kempe – Children First/Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare
  • Mark Fraser – Compass, Boussole, Akii-Izhinoogan Mental Health, Development and Community Services for Children, Youth and Families
  • Melissa Jennings – Knowledge Institute on Child and Youth Mental Health and Addictions

Systems Planning Reference Group (Under Systems Planning Advisory Committee)

This reference group provides input from a range of industry partners to assist our systems planning advisory committee in its work. This includes local and regional experience to help guide the ongoing development of the OITP.

  • Cathy Paul (Chair) – Kinark Child and Family Services
  • Alexandra Fortin – Le Cap
  • Ali Juma – Algoma Family Services
  • Ceri Harnden – EveryMind Mental Health Services
  • Heather Fedy – Starling Community Services
  • Joanne Bezzubetz – Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario/Youth Services Bureau of Ottawa
  • Kelly Baker – Wellkin-Child and Youth Mental Wellness
  • Michael Hone – Crossroads Children’s Mental Health Centre
  • Normandie Wragg – Maltby Centre
  • Shaun Baylis – Pathstone Mental Health
  • Susan Chamberlain – The George Hull Centre for Children and Families
  • Susan Sweetman – Children’s Mental Health Services

This advisory group brings expertise on implementation science and methods and is focused on essential elements and supports for implementing successful regional intensive treatment networks.

  • Kathryn Matsushita - Knowledge Institute on Child and Youth Mental Health and Addictions
  • Cynthia Weaver – Kinark Child and Family Services
  • Gina Lacombe - Équipe psycho-sociale pour enfants, jeunes et familles de SDG
  • Leanne Pringle – Vanier Children’s Mental Wellness
  • Mamta Chail – Youthdale Treatment Centres
  • Dr. Melanie Barwick – The Hospital for Sick Children
  • Mike Beauchesne – Dave Smith Youth Treatment Centre
  • Susan Kennedy – The Phoenix Centre for Children and Families
  • Susie Trotter – Cornwall Community Hospital
  • Tatum Wilson – Children’s Mental Health Organization
  • Ex-officio; Melissa Jennings – Knowledge Institute on Child and Youth Mental Health and Addictions
  • Ex-officio; Dr. Poppy Desclouds – Knowledge Institute on Child and Youth Mental Health and Addictions

This advisory group is focused on helping to develop a clinical program model, including considerations such as clinical human resources strategies, aimed at creating a successful future state for the OITP.

  • Catherine Dupont (Co-Chair) – Valoris for Children and Adults of Prescott-Russell
  • Paul Stimers (Co-Chair) – Reach Out Centre for Kids
  • Chris Bouchard – Turning Point Youth Services
  • David Willis – Keystone Child, Youth and Family Services
  • Elina Di Luca – The George Hull Centre for Children and Families
  • Erin Physick – Strides Toronto
  • Julia Giachino – Crossroads Children’s Mental Health Centre
  • Dr. Laurel Johnson – Kinark Child and Family Services
  • Lisa Joubert – Children’s Centre Thunder Bay
  • Dr. Megan Simpson – Roberts Smart Centre
  • Melanie Barksey – Hands theFamilyHelpNetwork.ca
  • Misty Gray – Vanier Children’s Mental Wellness
  • Dr. Peter Braunberger – Northern Ontario School of Medicine

This committee brings the lens of young people and family members to advise and consult on the activities of the OITP. The input and feedback from members can be used to inform decisions and guide the ongoing development of the pathway.

The committee is made up of 12 members—six young people and six family members with lived experience.

This committee’s role is to provide expert advice and strategic direction that ensures the perspectives of francophones and French-language service providers are integrated into all facets of OITP’s work.

The committee will start its work in September 2025. Expression of interest launching in June.

Two women embracing

Our Process

From an idea to system change.

The OITP process began in March 2024. The timeline for work lays out a multi-year plan to effectively transform the intensive mental health treatment system for children and youth in Ontario.
View Timeline

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Land acknowledgement

The OITP operates across Ontario on traditional, unceded and unsurrendered territories of Indigenous Peoples (First Nations, Métis and Inuit). Our presence in this territory is part of a painful legacy of child welfare that caused generational harm in Indigenous communities. We seek to honour our hosts by building culturally competent and consistent approaches into the intensive mental health treatment system, and work towards decolonization, learning and healing.
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