Professor Lesley Lutes, Registered Psychologist, Director of Clinical Training at UBCO
Image Credit: Submitted by Lesley Lutes
May 31, 2019 - 4:16 PM
KELOWNA - A barrier-free wellness clinic, accessible without an appointment to anyone who needs help.
It began as a five-week pilot project in fall 2018, but the walk-in mental health clinic on UBC Okanagan’s campus was such a success, it has now become permanent.
The clinic is a space where anyone, from students to members of the community, can drop-in for free mental health services, no referral or diagnosis necessary.
The walk-in wellness clinic is open Thursdays from 10 to 3 p.m. at UBCO and located in the Arts and Sciences building in room ASC 167.
The purpose of the clinic is to provide support to individuals in distress without financial barriers while training PhD students for their future in health care delivery. There are currently six registered psychologists consulting at the clinic.
One expert is Lesley Lutes, an associate professor and director of clinical training for the PhD program in clinical psychology at UBCO.
Lutes and her team accommodated over 50 drop-in sessions during the first pilot-project, helping individuals with issues such as depression, anxiety, stress, substance abuse and suicidal tendencies.
In the fall, Lutes will be testing the first integrated primary care clinic on the UBCO campus.
In integrated primary care, medical doctors and psychologists work side-by-side to provide people with the help they need in a single appointment, without having to refer them somewhere else.
This is standard practice at Lutes’ former institution in North Carolina. Now she wants to accomplish the same in Kelowna.
To reach the clinic for more information, call: 250-807-8241
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