From Carlene Donnelly, CUPS Executive Director

Sometimes reducing barriers for support and care comes down to the initial welcome to a physical space. For people who often feel judged and unworthy, a warm welcome starts a relationship off on a better foot. When an individual or family comes to CUPS, they are being courageous just coming in the door and we want them to see and feel it. To know we are happy they are here.

A new, welcoming reception area to CUPS is one part of a long-awaited $3 million capital project that will be completed later this year. All part of a continued effort to improve access to integrated care and services, this 10,000+ square foot space will begin with creating a warm and welcoming entry point for visitors. When clients walk into CUPS, there will be a comfortable waiting room, stroller parking and a welcome to CUPS desk with someone waiting there to greet them as soon as they walk through our doors.

But it’s so much more than a building entrance. By redesigning the primary access to CUPS, we are also making room to welcome community partners to the space, expanding our impact immediately. Rapid Care Counselling and Community Connect YYC are just two service options that will be right there when a client arrives looking for support.

We can help you right now

Having these partners physically in the building means we can put much-needed supports into care plans much more efficiently, ensuring our clients feel they are getting the supports they need in a truly integrated way.

Despite the array of programs and services around the city, what’s often the biggest barrier for those with a long history of trauma is the lack of trust. One of the most complex human emotions, trauma has a way of making a dent in trusting yourself and others. The sooner we can show support to those experiencing trauma while still giving them a voice to drive their high-level goals, we can begin to establish trust and engagement right away, building relationships. Instead of sending someone on their way with an appointment for next week that we hope they show up for, we are helping them right now, in the moment.

Redesigning for impact

As part of this project, we are also excited to use some undeveloped space to improve the layout and design for two key departments at CUPS.

First, we’ll be bringing our child and family programs together onto one floor, which will immediately improve the opportunities for care planning with families and ensure that we’re applying brain science consistently in our work with everyone in the family.

This adjustment also means we can move mental health into its own department. Mental health has proven to be one of the most universally seen and accessed programs at CUPS. In fact, we anticipate more than 1,000 Calgarians to use this space each year. COVID has greatly emphasized the need for additional mental health resources more than ever.

A collaborative process

This project has been driven by all components of CUPS. I’m a big believer that it’s my role to strategically present high-level options: the what and the why. But ‘how’ is all about staff. How to design the layout to work best for staff and clients — that was driven by staff who know the clients they work directly with the best.

We’ve been working to secure funding for this important work through our existing donor base but we hope to see interest from new supporters who see value in this kind of community investment. Our goal is to continue these conversations through the summer to secure further support from private individuals, corporate Calgary, foundations and government.