Psychiatric emergency services
The Psychiatry Emergency Service provides a prompt response to children and adolescents at risk for hurting themselves or someone else, and/or when a serious decline in the child or teen's ability to function is thought to be due to a psychiatric condition.
We are a referral resource and a short-term stabilization clinic for urgent and acute needs.
This section includes information on:
What we do
The services we offer include:
- Emergency Response
- Children/adolescents up to age 18 years and with legal guardian.
- Emergency room staff sees children/adolescents.
- If the emergency physician decides there is imminent risk of harm to self or others, or that immediate hospitalization is necessary, the psychiatry emergency team will be asked to provide a consultation.
- If the emergency physician determines there are no imminent concerns, patients may be given an appointment for our .
- Outpatient Assessments
Outpatient Assessments are done for ongoing risk assessment, for cases referred from the emergency department, and for those with no psychiatric involvement who have urgent concerns.
After the assessment, children and families may be:- Discharged back to the family doctor/paediatrician with recommendations
- Referred to a community agency
- Referred to a specialty clinic at Sick Kids or another hospital
- Offered brief intervention
We will accept referrals for risk assessments from health care practitioners, schools, and community agencies.
- Consultations
Consultations are available to health care professionals or therapists, or both, who have specific urgent questions. Examples of such questions are:- "What should we do about this teen's suicidal thoughts?"
- "Do we need to prescribe medication to treat this child's condition?"
- Brief Interventions
This clinic serves as a bridge. We help children and teens deal with urgent concerns while they are waiting to be connected to the resources they need.
After we have assessed the child or teen, we may offer one or more of these services before the patient move on to longer-term care at another site.- Education, information and community referrals
- Individual or group treatment
- Family treatment
- Behaviour management
- Medication follow-up
We are unable to provide long-term care, nor do we assume long-term care responsibilities from other clinicians.
- Urgent Care Clinic:
- Children and adolescents up to age 18 years and with legal guardian.
- Urgent clinic appointments are given when there is an acute and serious decline in ability to function that is thought to be due to a psychiatric condition.
- All cases are triaged to determine level of urgency, and appointments are generally available within 24-72 hours.
- After the assessment, outpatient treatment may be offered for short-term stabilization while waiting to be connected to an appropriate resource.
How to make a referral
We will accept referrals for risk assessments from a family doctor or physician only. A written request for consultation is required from the treating physician. Consultation letters are triaged for level of urgency and may be redirected. For your convenience, we are including a copy of our referral form here. It can be printed out, taken to the professional who is referring and, once completed, faxed back to Elaine Walker at 416-813-7785.
Contact Us
How to find the Urgent Care Clinic
555 University Avenue 7th Floor, Gerrard Street Wing (Annex — older part of hospital)
Please go to the Reception Room: 7525
For questions or to refer someone to our team:
Elaine Walker, Child and Youth Counsellor
Behavioural Specialist and Clinical Coordinator
Phone: 416-813-7005
Fax: 416-813-7785
Email: elaine.walker@sickkids.ca
Program staff
Dr. Johanne Roberge heads the Psychiatry Emergency Team, which includes:
- A Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist (Dr. Roberge)
- Child and Youth Counsellors
- A Clinical Nurse Specialist/Nurse Practitioner
- Psychiatry Residents
- A Social Worker
- A Secretary
Professional education
Community workshops
Team members conduct workshops for community agencies on acute psychiatric assessment and management. These cover such issues as suicide risk assessment, depression, and psychosis. A fee may be negotiated
Professional training
The Hospital for Sick Children provides the only Toronto site where psychiatric residents can receive on-call training in child and adolescent psychiatry.
Students in nursing, social work, and child and youth counselling also receive training in urgent psychiatric care through placements with our service.
For further information on these opportunities, contact
Dr. Johanne Roberge
Director, Psychiatry Emergency and Crisis Service (PECS),
Email: johanne.roberge@sickkids.ca.
Elaine Walker
Child and Youth Counsellor, Behavioural Specialist and Clinical Coordinator
Psychiatry
The Hospital for Sick Children
Phone: 416-813-7005
Fax: 416-813-7785
email: elaine.walker@sickkids.ca