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Collaborating through specialized & referral based programs

Brief Intervention Caregiver Support

What can I expect from this service?

When children are placed into foster or kinship care as a result of an intervention, it is a traumatic event. The Brief Intervention Caregiver Support program (BICS) helps reduce the trauma and toxic stress experienced by children in care, by using a comprehensive approach to help caregivers understand the unique needs of children in their care. Caregivers learn about grief and loss, trauma and attachment – and how these factors can contribute to placement disruption.

The BICS clinician partners with caregivers and the Children’s Services case team to develop a plan that will help the caregiver build knowledge, practice skills, and develop personal awareness to create a safe and responsive caregiving environment for the child(ren) in their care.

Brief Intervention Caregiver Support

Is this service for me?

This program is for caregivers who are offering foster and kinship placements in their homes, as well as caregivers working with the Supports for Permanency program.

How do I access this service?

This program can only be accessed through referral by Children’s Services Case Team staff. Please contact your Calgary Region Children’s Services case team for a referral.

Do I have to pay for this service?

This is a free service for caregivers providing care to children in placements with Child and Family Services.

I want to find out more about this service

To access the service, contact your Children’s Services case team. For general inquiries, please contact our intake team at 403.233.2360 .

Children’s Services Counselling (R&E)

Children’s Services Counselling

* This program is no longer being offered *

Moving forward, Kindred will have two key areas of focus. The first is to provide accessible, coordinated mental health services. Our second area of focus is more preventative, supporting the development of strong and nurturing relationships between children and their caregivers. This year, we sought to more rigorously evaluate our services for alignment with our strategy and community need. This means that we said goodbye to four Kindred programs in 2024, including Children’s Services Counselling. While it’s sad to see long-term programs like Children’s Services Counselling come to an end, we remain proud of the impact of these programs and confident that consolidating our portfolio will better serve our clients. Kindred can still support you and your family with accessible mental health care through our Rapid Access Counselling (RAC) service. For those seeking help or to learn more, please visit: Rapid Access Counselling.

Healthy Babies Network

What can I expect from this service?

Funded through the Public Health Agency of Canada’s Canada Prenatal Nutrition Program– Healthy Babies Network provides health provisions, information, and support to member agencies to ensure quality pre- and post-natal care for new mothers in identified underserved populations (adolescents, immigrant, Indigenous) during the pre/post-natal period (0-12 months). Dietitians provide individual nutritional assessment and counselling and provide group workshops on a range of infant health related topics to clients at member agencies.

Is this service for me?

This service is for agencies who works with pregnant and parenting individuals with children up to the age of 12 months who are at risk of having a low birth weight baby including immigrant individuals, Indigenous individuals, adolescent individuals and individuals who have had a previous low birth weight baby.

Healthy Babies Network

How do I access this service?

For more information about the Healthy Babies Network, call Shelby Newman at 403.205.5885 or shelby.newman@kindred.ca.

Alberta Health Services:
Addiction and Mental Health – Enhanced Services for Women
Well Child Services
Best Beginning
Elbow River Healing Lodge Prenatal Clinic
Postpartum Community Services
Awo-Taan Family Wellness Centre Parent Link
BowWest Community Resource Centre
Calgary Catholic Immigration Society Margaret Chisholm Resettlement Centre – Refugee Health Program
Calgary Catholic School District – Kara Life Program
Calgary Pregnancy Care Centre
Calgary Regional Home Visitation Collaborative (Healthy Families):
Calgary Immigrant Women’s Association
Children’s Cottage
Closer to Home
Pathways Community Services Association
Carya – Prime Time Program
CUPS Women’s Health Clinic

Elizabeth House
Families Matter:
52nd Street Hub
Pride Parent Link NW Hub
Shaganappi Village
Heart of the North East Family Centre and Parent Link
Hull Services – Patch
Immigrant Services Calgary – Healthy Start Program at Mosaic and Genesis sites
Kindred:
Louise Dean Centre
Calgary Achievement Centre for Youth
McMan Youth, Family and Community Services Association PCAP program
Native Network Parent Link Centre
North Central Family Support Program
South West Communities Resource Centre
West Central Resource Centre
YWCA Parent Link

Do I have to pay for this service?

This is a free service.

I want to find out more about this service

For more information about the Healthy Babies Network, call Shelby Newman at 403.205.5885 or shelby.newman@kindred.ca.

Children’s Services Counselling (R&E)

Refugee & Immigrant Counselling in Schools (RICS)

What can I expect from this service?

Refugee and immigrant students can access services through self-referral, caregivers/parents, a teacher, or other school staff. A single session is offered that is supportive and change-focused and helps with a current stressor or ongoing struggle. If the student and the Counsellor decide that ongoing therapy might be a fit, they will continue to meet together regularly for up to 12 sessions.

Is this service for me?

Refugee & Immigrant Counselling in Schools (RICS) is offered in partnership with the Calgary Board of Education (CBE) to provide mental health counselling to students in grades 7-12. Located on-site at multiple CBE schools in Calgary, refugee and immigrant students have timely and simple access to both single-session and longer term trauma-informed counselling.

How do I access this service?

If the RICS program is available in your school, you can phone the school and self-refer or talk to your school administration. Sessions will be available on-site every week for quick and seamless access into service.

Do I have to pay for this service?

This free service is provided by Counsellors in the school, in partnership between Kindred and the CBE.

I want to find out more about this service

For more information about Refugee & Immigrant Counselling in Schools, call Sara-Lynn Kang at 403.205.5210 or saralynn.kang@kindred.ca.