A community outreach program, serving residents of Halton

• Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) is a team treatment approach designed to provide comprehensive, community-based psychiatric treatment, rehabilitation, and support to persons with serious and persistent mental illness such as schizophrenia

Assertive approach

• clients served by ACT typically have severe functional impairments, have avoided or not responded well to traditional outpatient mental health care and psychiatric services and often have co-existing problems such as homelessness, substance abuse problems, or involvement with the judicial system
• ACT uses an 'assertive' approach where team members are pro-active with clients, assisting them to participate in and continue treatment, live independently, and recover from disability

Primary Provider of Service

• the multidisciplinary make-up of each team (psychiatrist, nurses, social workers, rehabilitation workers etc) and the small client to staff ratio, helps the team provide most services with minimal referrals to other mental health programs or providers
• the ACT team members share offices and their roles are interchangeable when providing services to ensure that services are not disrupted due to staff absence or turnover

Services Are Provided Out of Office

• also known as "Hospital without Walls" services are provided within community settings, such as a person’s own home and neighborhood, local restaurants, parks and nearby stores

Highly Individualized Services

• treatment plans, developed with the client are based on individual strengths, needs, hopes and desires
• plans are modified as needed through an ongoing assessment and goal setting process
• treatment plans are updated on a continuous basis to increase or decrease intensity of support in real time to align with changing client needs

Services provided include:  

• comprehensive case management with a rehabilitation focus
• initial and ongoing assessments
• crisis assessment and intervention
• symptom assessment and management
• administration and monitoring of medication
• regular psychiatrist appointments 
• coordination of primary health care services and support managing co-occurring medical conditions, 
• employment and housing assistance
• family support and education 
• substance abuse services 
• activities of daily living
• social and leisure skills development
• supportive counselling

Office:

• Mon-Thu 8:30 am-7 pm
• Fri-Sun 8:30 am-4:30 pm

Services are provided for individuals who:

• have a history of severe and persistent mental illness, as demonstrated by high hospitalization days, particularly those with a diagnosis of schizophrenia or other psychotic disorders
• exhibit significant functional impairments due to their mental illness
• continuously require high service needs in excess of 1-2 visits per week
• individuals who have not responded well to traditional outpatient supports and services

Referrals to the PACT program are accepted from psychiatrists and family physicians