New mental health program at 2 N.B. universities offers 24/7 support

A new program for students at the University of New Brunswick and St. Thomas University promises to give students access to mental health support 24/7.

The program is open to all undergraduate and graduate students at the two schools. 

"We want people to know if it's, like, three in the morning and you really want to talk to somebody, there's an option for you," said April Kennedy, director of UNB Counselling Services.

"People feel isolated in their struggles, and sometimes you have to wait for a counselling appointment, or the moment where you feel like talking about it isn't at the same moment that you have an appointment." 

The new program is a collaboration by the universities and Togetherall, an online program based in the United Kingdom and used by other universities in Canada, Nova Scotia residents, and Veterans Affairs Canada. 

Students who sign up will be able to access peer-to-peer support at any time as part of their tuition.

"If you do an informal session, and it turns out that you have anxiety, for example, they'll link you to a group of people who are talking in real time about that topic in helpful ways," Kennedy said. 

Not a replacement for counselling

Along with the one-on-one and group support, the program also offers resources such as self-help courses for anxiety, sleep and depression.

The platform is anonymous but connected to the student's university email. It's also monitored all day by trained mental health professionals, who can intervene if there's a crisis.  

UNB said Togetherall is dedicated to maintaining the privacy of its users. The platform is safe, secure and used by universities across Canada, all residents of Nova Scotia and Veterans Affairs Canada, a UNB release said.

Kennedy said that while the program is an excellent tool, it isn't meant to replace existing counselling services. UNB still offers counselling, and in-person peer-to-peer support. 

But this is another option for people in need. 

"We want students to feel like they have a wide range of options," Kennedy said. "It's like a platter of options, really. You don't pick one or the other. You can choose to access all of those."

Kennedy said UNB doesn't have any data yet on how many people have used the program since its October launch, but that from what she's heard from students, it's going well.