A maximum of 12 youth, between the ages of 12 and 17 are accepted into our intake. The program operates through gender blocks, each intake alternating between male and female.

The treatment program is comprised of the following:

• behaviour and/or mental health assessment
• treatment planning based on individual need
• individual and group counselling, therapy, recreations using western methods and traditional practices
• NNHC’s Learning Centre gives each participant the opportunity to increase confidence and skills
• NNHC’s Nutrition Program gives each participant quality meals and snacks as prepared according to Canada’s Food Guide in addition to teachings around nutrition
• health, dental and optical care are accessed through our local health centres
• life skills education
• aftercare planning

The four quadrants of wellness are at the core of the NNHC teachings, with emphasis given to each of the components that make us whole – physical, emotional, mental and emotional.

In nurturing the participants emotional self, NNHC’s staff are qualified child and youth workers, eager and ready to support youth through the process of recognizing feelings, determining their source and developing new ways of coping. A senior counsellor is on staff to offer individual counselling in an effort to process trauma and uncover innate resiliency.

NNHC is staffed by an accredited teacher whose goal is to nurture each participant’s mental self knowledge through assessing academic grade functioning level and increasing confidence in the classroom in a supportive and caring way. Daily structured programming builds upon classroom skills, and examines thought processes, decision making, and offers education around addiction, life skills, emotional intelligence and relapse.

In nurturing the physical self, participants are exposed to teachings around nutrition and how to feed and nourish one’s self, in addition to developing valuable skills on the land; such as, lodge building, canoeing/fishing, elements of hunting and fasting. Medical, dental and optical needs are met through accessing local practitioners and following through with their recommendations.

Lastly, the spiritual self is nurtured through an array of sacred teachings, Elder visits and ceremonial experiences. Participants are gifted with the knowledge of their traditional names and clans as a part of the process of understanding self and connecting with ones purpose.

Much has been taken from us, the First Peoples, through our longstanding experiences with colonization and assimilation and as a result, our young people bear the burden of lost identities and connection to traditional ways. At Nimkee Nupigawagan Healing Centre, we recognize the importance of nurturing ones spirit in an effort to experience wellness.