Your mental health is just as important as your physical health.
Learn more about what you can expect during your visit for mental health concerns.
A typical mental health emergency department visit
The Emergency Department is a busy place.
Here are the typical steps you can expect while you are here.
Step 1: Arrival
You may arrive by ambulance with Emergency Medical Services (EMS), by car or walk in, or accompanied by police.
Step 2: Triage
Please wait at the red stop sign. This gives the folks ahead of you some privacy.
Please have your Alberta Health Care Card ready.
Triage means to determine the order in which patients need to be seen based on a nurse's assessment.
If the ED is especially busy, a staff may take your name and invite you to take a seat.
When it is your turn, a triage nurse will call on you and enter you into our system.
To help you know what kind of care you need, the nurse will listen to your story and ask some questions about your mental and physical health. They may also do a quick check of your temperature, heart rate, oxygen saturation, and blood pressure. This helps the nurse decide what type of room you need and how quickly you will be seen.
Some children and teens who are in a mental health or emotional crisis have thoughts about not wanting to be alive anymore. The nurse will ask some questions about suicide to help us to know if this is something you have thought about too. The nurse might ask to talk to you on your own for these questions.
You will then go to the Registration desk.
Step 3: Registration
You will again need your Alberta Health Care Card at registration.
Staff will confirm your contact information and give you a wristband with your name on it that links to your electronic health record. This may be scanned later when you are provided with treatment. It is important to keep it on for your entire visit.
When you are checked in, you can take a seat in the waiting room.
Step 4: Waiting
Now you sit and wait for your name to be called. This can take a while. There are TVs in the waiting room that have children's shows. There is another TV above the security desk that shows health information. Be sure to check it out!
People who are seriously injured or very sick are always seen first in the ED. This means that other people might be brought back to the treatment spaces before you, even if you got here first.
Our triage nurses are experts at knowing who needs to be seen first (like those who are having trouble breathing) and who is safe enough to wait a bit. They decide this based on how sick the person is, who they need to be seen by, and what treatment spaces and staff are free.
If there are no immediate safety concerns at triage, one of our mental health team members may come talk to you about your options for care. They might offer you the option of meeting with our mental health social worker for a one-time appointment (called a Choice Appointment), instead of waiting in the ED. A Choice Appointment doesn't make sense for everyone, and you can always say no.
We know it is incredibly difficult to wait.
Please know we have not forgotten about you.
If at any time during your wait, your condition changes or you have questions or concerns, you can go and speak to the triage nurse.
It is OK to ask.
While you wait, you can start a list to summarize your health history. You can do this as a note on your phone. This information will help the team care for you. Be sure to include:
- any medicines you take (you can find medicines tracking tools here)
- any allergies
- history of previous hospitalizations
- any previous surgeries
- chronic conditions or illnesses
- relevant family history
You can check estimated wait times here.
Please review the other resources in this guide to help prepare for when you are called and to help pass the time:
Eating or Drinking
Parking
Maps
Pain & Comfort
Coping & Distraction
Comfort Items - No one plans for a trip to the emergency. The Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation Women's Network has you covered. Need a clean t-shirt? Blanket? Phone or iPad cord? Colouring book? Ask any member of your care team and we will do our best to help.
Every child is unique...
We understand that each child needs different support during their hospital visit.
Children & youth who are anxious about hospitals or medical procedures (like needles), who are neurodivergent, or have other unique needs might need extra help to feel safe and calm while in the ED.
Child Life Team are professionals that can help! They can minimize the stress and anxiety caused by being sick and in the hospital. We even have a Stollery Child Life Specialist who is dedicated to mental health.
Talk to your nurse about connecting with the Child Life team at any point during your visit.
If you know certain treatments have helped you in the past, please let us know. You know what works best for you.
Click here for some specific resources and coping tools to help minimize discomfort, anxiety, etc.
Step 5: Moving into a Care Space
Listen for your name to be called by a staff member. They will take you through the double doors into a care space. You will probably be in one of the specialized mental health care rooms. If they are full, or if you need extra care for your physical health, you might be in one of the other care spaces.
Safety is always our first priority. Our nurses will ask to go through your things together. We do this with every youth in our mental health care spaces to make sure there is nothing that you or someone else could use to hurt themselves or another person. If there is anything that might be unsafe, we can keep it in our mental health office or in a locked locker.
Step 6: Assessment / Treatment
Our emergency mental health team will come to meet with you in your room. Most youth will be seen by one of our mental health nurses first. They’ll usually start by talking to you and your parent/caregiver separately, then meet with you all together to talk about a plan. The emergency department doctor may come talk to you too.
After you meet with our nurse, there are other mental health professionals on our team that might be asked to come talk to you too, including a mental health social worker and a child and adolescent psychiatrist. It’s important to know that many people who come to the emergency department will not meet with a psychiatrist.
Click here for some coping and distraction ideas.
Some children and teens might need medicine to help them settle down while they’re in the emergency department. Our nurses will talk to you about this if needed.
Click here to explore the roles of the health care team members you may meet during your visit.
Step 7: Admission or Discharge
The Mental Health team and emergency department doctor will talk to you about next steps. They will work with you to make a support plan.
The emergency department is a place of stabilization, rather than treatment. Treatment usually happens later in the community or, sometimes, on a hospital unit. We don't usually start new medicines for mental health concerns from the emergency department.
Most children go home from the emergency department with a plan for follow-up in the community. It can be scary for you and your caregivers/parents to go home after a mental health crisis, especially if you have had thoughts of suicide. Our mental health team will talk with you and your caregivers/parents about what they can do to support you. Our mental health crisis team will call you in a couple of days to check-in.
Some children might need to be admitted to an inpatient psychiatry unit at a hospital or a community treatment program. It’s important to know that this doesn’t happen very often. Just like any other treatment options, you might have questions about the risks and benefits. Ask one of our team members if you have any questions or worries about next steps .
Step 8: After your visit
An emergency room visit can be exhausting. Please try to rest and recover afterwards.
If medicines were prescribed, please be sure to have this filled at a pharmacy as soon as possible. Only take the medicine as the doctor prescribed it. Community pharmacists can help explain how to take your medicine, talk to you about possible side-effects and answer your questions. Click here for a resource on how to talk to your health care team members about medicines.
There are supports in the community. Please review the FAQ section for additional resources.
Mental Health Emergency Visit FAQs
Who will I see?
You will be seen by a variety of health care providers from the Mental Health team and the Emergency Department.
Stollery Emergency Mental Health Team
This team supports children who are experiencing a mental health crisis. Mental health nurses do most of the assessments. We have mental health social workers, a family counselor, and child psychiatrists on the team that can help too. There are two mental health rooms in the ED, but we can see kids in other rooms too.
Mental Health Nurses (RN/RPN/LPN)
Our mental health nurses are the go-to people on the mental health team. They do mental health assessments and work with the emergency doctor to come-up with plan. They are the bedside nurses for families in the mental health rooms and see families in the other rooms too.
Mental Health Social Workers
Our social workers specialize in mental health. They might be asked to support some families while they’re in the emergency department. Our social workers can help remove barriers and connect families to social resources in the community.
Family Counselor
We have a family counselor on our team. Our mental health social workers can refer to them. Our family counselor focuses on supporting families who need to visit the emergency department a lot because of their child’s mental health. They can help families improve relationships and work through conflicts in a crisis.
Click here to learn more about all the other staff in the ED.
I am hungry - where can I get some food?
It is important to ask your nurse before eating or drinking in case you require certain testing or procedures.
If you are permitted to eat, some food and drink options are provided for patients. Ask your nurse.
For caregivers, there are several options:
Vending Machines are located just inside the entrance to the ED waiting room.
The main Walter C. Mackenzie Health Centre building has several food options on the main floor. You can access them by entering the 112th street entrance. Click here for hours of operation.
On 112 street there is a Tim Horton's, Wendy's, Subway, Second Cup, Starbucks, Earl's, etc. Click here for more options
You can always ask your team for water, or if other food options are available.
What can I do to distract myself while I wait?
It can help to write down your history and your questions while you wait. You can do this as a note on your phone.
Colouring books may be available and can be a calming activity - just ask.
Listening to music can help. Use healthspot wi-fi to access streaming like YouTube, Apple music or Spotify.
There are some great videos about teen mental health here.
Click here to explore some ideas from the Stollery Child Life team.
What will happen when I go home?
We hope that you were able to get the support you needed when you came in. There is no quick fix for mental health concerns. Please refer to your discharge plan, connect with community resources and supports. We will always be here if you need us.
After you have been assessed and discharged you will receive instructions to take home. You may be asked to visit your family doctor or be referred to a specialist for follow up care. Our staff may make a referral and the specialist’s office may contact you for an appointment.
If your condition gets worse or problems develop when you get home:
- phone your family doctor or
- contact the crisis intervention team for children and youth
- phone Health Link at 811 for 24/7 service from a registered nurse or
- you can return to an emergency department.
Click here to help decide what kind of care you need.
What about in a crisis?
Call the Children’s Crisis and Stabilization Team at 780-407-1000 8am-11:45pm daily
Call KidsHelpPhone at 1-800-668-6868 or text “CONNECT” to 686868 24/7
Call or text the 988 Suicide Crisis Helpline at 9-8-8 24/7
Call the AHS Mental Health Helpline 1-877-303-2642 24/7
Call the Indigenous Hope for Wellness Helpline at 1-855-242-3310 or chat online 24/7
National Trans Lifeline 1-877-330-6366 11am-7pm, M-F
In an emergency, call 911 or bring the individual to the emergency department
Do you have any recommended mental health resources for me and my folks?
For Children and Youth
Help Lines:
Helplines
Crisis and Stabilization Team for Children and Youth (CAST)
ConnecTeen Youth Helpline
Help4me.ca
Virtual Support:
Kickstand
Text4Hope
Information & Resources:
Child & Youth Mental Health & Addiction
Anxiety Canada
Bounce Back Program
Rolling With ADHD
For Parents & Caregivers
Please feel free to ask the Social Worker for available supports.
Crisis Support:
Crisis and Stabilization Team for Children and Youth (CAST)
Peer Support
CMHA Caregiver Connection
Information & Resources:
Addiction & Mental Health
AHS Parent & Guardian Information
Resource Library & Videos and Info Sheets
Pediatric Psychology Topics
Kelty Mental Health
Mental Health Literacy
CHEO Parenting Videos
Caregivers Alberta
Courses
Caregiving 101
Triple P Parenting
Medications
Kelty Medications
Suicide:
Kelty Mental Health: Suicide
KidsHelpPhone: Suicide
Mental Health Literacy: Suicide
Suicide Prevention
CHEO: Suicide and Safety Planning
Anxiety
Anxiety Canada - My Anxiety Plan
Self-Injury:
The Cornell Research Program on Self-Injury and Recovery
Mental Health Literacy
ADHD
Rolling With ADHD
Eating Disorders
National Eating Disorder Information Centre
Eating Disorder Support Network - Alberta
Kelty Eating Disorders
Tourette OCD:
The Tourette OCD Alberta Network
How do I access mental health supports in the community?
Speak to your family doctor or pediatrician.
Sign-up for a Virtual Caregiver Education Session
Call our Children’s Mental Health Intake Service at 825-402-6799
Attend a Single Session Walk-in Appointment at one of our Children’s Mental Health Clinics:
- Northgate Centre in Edmonton: 12:30-4pm, M-F, 780-342-2700
- Rutherford Professional Centre in Edmonton; 12:30-4pm, M-F, 780-342-6850
- Centre of Hope Building in Leduc: 12:30-4pm, W, 780-986-2660
- St. Albert Provincial Building: 12:30-4pm, W, 780-342-1410
Visit Kickstand Connect, a virtual mental health clinic for young Albertans (12-25)
Young Adults (16-25) can visit ACCESS Open Minds at 108th Street Building. Walk-in M-F, 12-5pm or call 780-887-9781.
Adults can call Access 24/7 at 780-424-2424 or walk-in at the Edmonton Community Health Hub North from 8am-10pm
Families living in Northern, Central, and Southern Alberta can call Access Addiction and Mental Health at 1-888-594-0211
Search for Private Therapists at psychologytoday.com and filter results based on what you’re looking for