The Kelson Group in Kamloops has announced a donation of $1.5 million for a mental health and substance use department at the new Royal Inland Hospital patient care tower.

Vice president Jason Fawcett says the donation will be made over several years and thinks it will go a long way for supporting people in the region.

“I think over the last few years it’s become obvious that mental health and substance use is more and more of a challenge throughout Kamloops and the entire region and our entire country. We know that from housing people in our apartments, that when mental health is a challenge it makes it very hard to be a good neighbour,” Fawcett tells NL News.

“That ends up spiralling often into unsecure housing and in worst case scenarios all the way to homelessness. And we believe that the more supports we have in the community towards helping people when they do have challenges, that’s going to help everyone live better, and the hospital is one big part of it.”

The CEO of the Royal Inland Hospital Foundation says the new mental health and substance use department will be a night-and-day difference from the current program.

“So this new build in the tower is going to be two floors for mental health and substance abuse, and that’s 30 beds on each floor. The main one will be the sixth floor, and then another floor, the rooms are made so that someone with mental health issues can go in there,” Heidi Coleman says.

She explains where the $1-point-5-million-dollar donation from the Kelson Group will go.

“That’s going to pay for a lot of the equipment and to outfit everything in the whole building. The naming is for that floor, and they’ll be purchasing the equipment and everything that’s needed for those floors and the other floors that can house these patients.”

Fawcett says 1-in-5 people in Canada deal with mental health issues.

The $417-million-dollar, nine-storey patient care tower is expected to open in 2022.