Our Approach to Education & Prevention

 Blood Ties Four Directions Centre uses a harm reduction approach to education and prevention. Meeting participants where they are at, our goal is to empower people to make safer choices.  In collaboration and engagement with rural communities, we explore First Nations’ approaches to promoting safe behaviours while increasing community capacity for awareness and prevention. Through our education programs, we also aim to decrease stigma and discrimination amongst community members related to HIV, Hepatitis C, drug use and sexually transmitted infections.

Workshops in Rural Yukon Communities

Blood Ties Four Directions Centre provides workshops and information sessions on HIV, Hepatitis C, Sexual health, Overdose Prevention and Harm Reduction. The workshops are facilitated in a safe and inclusive way, encouraging sex-positivity and diversity of its community members. Our goal is to equip people with knowledge, skills, and tools for healthy decision-making for themselves and for their community.

Furthermore, our aim is to provide a space for community members to gather, share and examine culturally safe approaches to safe behaviors and practices for their community with the goal of enhancing understanding of HIV and hepatitis C and its relationship to addiction and drug use.

These fun, interactive, and free information sessions can be adapted for different ages, genders, length of times, and groups.

Available workshops in rural Yukon.

Youth Empowering Youth Workshops

BT4D and BYTE Empowering Youth – a youth for youth organization that focuses on empowering and promoting youth throughout the Yukon – is collaborating to deliver a comprehensive two-day workshop for youth, aged 14-18 years old, or 15-21 years old in rural and remote Yukon communities. The Youth Empowering Youth workshop will provide opportunities to develop tangible skills and increase capacity among youth on issues that affect their health and the health of their communities. Together, topics such as mental health, sexual health, healthy relationships, consent and boundaries, harm reduction and safer partying, and decision and leadership skills, will be explored.

HEAT Program

We are very pleased to be delivering the very effective – very popular HEAT (Health Empowerment and Action Together) Program to rural Yukon youth. The program allows youth ages 14 to 18 to gain skills and knowledge to make positive life choices around their health. The goal of the program is to prevent HIV, STIs and Hepatitis C among youth using a harm reduction approach.

This program is designed for youth in rural Yukon ages 14-18 years.

The program was built by Blood Ties Four Directions Centre around the Information – Motivation – Behavioural Skills (IMB) model, which focuses on the importance of providing not only information, but also increasing motivation to use the information as well as the behavioural skills necessary to do so.

Our program consists of 2 full day sessions where youth participate in interactive activities and skill-building games, in a safe and positive environment:

1. Intro to STBBIs and Safer Sex
2. Identifying values, making healthy decisions, and communicating them
3. Prevention and Resources
4. Dealing with Triggers and Slips
5. Dealing with Harmful Thoughts, Wrap Up

This program can be customized to fit the needs of the community.

Resources, Harm Reduction Supplies & Condoms

We can provide free educational resources on Harm Reduction, HIV, Hepatitis C, Overdose Prevention & Sexual health. We can also facilitate access to free condoms, harm reduction supplies and naloxone kits for organizations & businesses.

Vacant

Rural Partnership Coordinator                                                                                                                                  867-332-8266                                                                                                                      partnership@bloodties.ca

Alex Hodgins

Community Harm Reduction Coordinator                                                                                                            867-332-8269                                                                                                                              scaleup@bloodties.ca 

Breagha Fraser                                                                                                                                                    Community Engagement Coordinator                                                                                                                    867-687-4548                                                                                                                                                community@bloodties.ca