The Ontario Immediate Family Wellness Program (the “family wellness program”) provides compassionate assistance for grieving families of individuals who have died in the line of duty or by suicide in Ontario, including:
- adult correctional services employees
- firefighters
- police personnel
- paramedics
- ambulance communications officers
The family wellness program was developed by the Ontario government and informed by expert insights to meet the specific needs of families of these public safety personnel.
Our goal is to complement short-term victim services and immediate crisis supports by extending mental health services to meet the needs of families of public safety personnel who are experiencing loss, grief and bereavement. This program will help them navigate and access available supports.
Services are confidential and offer comprehensive care management, such as help navigating supports and connection to grief and bereavement counselling, as well as other resources for eligible individuals and families at no cost for up to two (2) years following registration with the Ontario Immediate Family Wellness Program.
The mental health services available through the family wellness program are:
- comprehensive and client-tailored case management services
- integrated approaches to care that support total wellness
- grief literate, trauma-informed and healing centred care
- focused on resilience, empowerment and building necessary support structures
- culturally appropriate and attuned services
Access Our Services
To access the family wellness program, eligible individuals may call a dedicated toll-free telephone line, staffed by our care management team, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.
Our services are safe and confidential to protect everyone’s privacy. We will never release the personal information of our clients for any reason without informed consent and no identifiers will be used in the collection of data.
Discover Services
Care Management:
Individuals are connected with our compassionate and qualified Care Management Team – specialists in navigating and activating services, and ongoing management. Our Care Managers are a consistent partner to those accessing support, from the first point of contact with the program onwards – ensuring a seamless experience.
Care Managers have experience working with families of public safety personnel and emergency services personnel, Indigenous communities, and those experiencing grief and loss and are committed to ongoing personal and professional development in a variety of areas to ensure care is delivered appropriately.
Our Care Managers offer a high degree of knowledge, skills and experience navigating individuals and families along pathways into support. They come from a variety of backgrounds including:
- social work
- social service work
- psychotherapy
- emergency communication services/dispatch
- emergency services/public safety
- crisis response
- healthcare
Care Managers are responsible for:
- providing immediate services to support grief and bereavement for families
- supporting families in navigating available mental health services
- finding counsellors and services with the right fit for each individual’s needs
The program works within the following three-step care model where our Care Managers provide:
- 1
Year-round immediate crisis and care planning for up to two years
- 2
Streamlined access to wide-ranging services to provide families with the necessary supports whenever they are needed, as well as rapid access to on-call counselors
- 3
Proactive, culturally appropriate and individualized care that supports families
Clinical Services
Family members who reach out for support will have access to a growing, vetted roster of Master’s Degree and PhD-level regulated mental health professionals who have experience and skill in working with those who are experiencing grief, loss and bereavement, as well as families of first responders, public safety personnel and emergency services personnel. Our clinical roster includes:
- Registered Social Workers
- Registered Psychotherapists
- Registered Psychological Associates
- Registered Psychologists
- Psychiatrists
Meet Dalton Associates
Dalton Associates, founded in 1995, is a mental health services organization that provides customized comprehensive care navigation services, as well as specialized and quality-assured mental health services (including psychological, behavioural, psychotherapy and social work). Our focus is on providing services that are culturally sensitive, safe, accessible, and timely to individuals, families, organizations, and communities throughout the province of Ontario.
