Q. What is Griffin Centre?
Answer:
Griffin Centre is an accredited, non-profit mental health centre offering a variety of services to youth, adults, and their families in
Toronto
.
Q. Where are you located?
Answer:
Griffin Centre’s head office is located at
24 Silverview Drive
in the Yonge and Finch area. We also have program sites located in East and
West Toronto
.
Q. What are your office hours?
Answer:
We are open Monday to Thursday, 8:30 am to 8:00 pm and Fridays from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm.
Q. How do I access your services?
Answer:
Call our Intake Worker at (416) 222-1153. Intake can answer questions about our programs and direct you to the right person.
Q. Who can access your services?
Answer:
We provide services to youth and adults individuals with mental health challenges and/or developmental disabilities.
Q. Do you have a waiting period for new clients? How long is it?
Answer:
Yes, there is a waiting list for our services, but the length of the list changes all the time, and is different depending on the service and program. Please contact our Intake Worker for more details.
Q. What type of programs and services do you offer?
Answer:
Griffin Centre has many different programs and services that are flexible and responsive to the changing needs of our clients. Counselling services are available to youth, adults and their families. We offer day treatment programs, and residential support services for youth and adults with a dual diagnosis (mild developmental delay coupled with mental health needs). The Griffin Community Support Network is also available to adults with a dual diagnosis.
Q. What is a Mild Developmental Disability?
Answer:
A developmental disability refers to the fact that a person’s intellectual and social functioning is significantly lower than what it should be for their age. On an IQ scale people fall within various categories which includes average, low average, borderline, mildly delayed, moderately delayed, and severely delayed. The only way to certain if someone has a developmental disability and specifically a mild developmental disability is to have a psychologist do an assessment. Assessments can be arranged through your family doctor, guidance counsellor, or teacher.
When a person has a developmental disability they are not able to “catch up” to others their own age. However, individuals with a mild developmental disability have the potential to live full and independent or semi-independent lives, however, they require a great deal of assistance to learn independent skills.
Q. What is a Dual Diagnosis?
Answer:
Within the community of service providers the term dual diagnosis refers to individuals with a developmental disability and mental health needs.
People who have a developmentally disability have significant cognitive and adaptive limitations which typically appear during childhood or adolescence. Stated a different way, these individuals are functioning intellectually well below age expectations. They also have difficulty in at least 2 areas of adaptive functioning behaviour which focus on how well they can meet personal and social demands. Areas of adaptive function include: communication, self-care and self-direction, home living, social and interpersonal skills, use of community resources, academic skills, work, leisure, health, and safety. The diagnosis of developmental disability is typically made by a psychologist through the use tests, interviews, observations, and informal assessment techniques. The degree to which a developmental disability is present is represented through category descriptors that include: mild, moderate, severe and profound.
The types of emotional/mental health problems we come across are numerous. For example, mood disorders (e.g., depression, bipolar), problems with substance use, anxiety disorders (e.g phobias, post traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder) attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, conduct and oppositional disorders, pervasive developmental disorders etc.”
Q. Do you charge for your services?
Answer:
There are no fees for our services for clients in
Toronto
with exception of participation of youth and adults in respite services provided by the Centre. There are fee for service programs available to youth, adults and their families who live outside our service area.
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