The social work team at Casey House plays an important role helping clients navigate systems that come with accessing health care. This is particularly important for people who do not have identification, are disconnected to health care systems, are new to Canada, have cognitive conditions, or otherwise have more limited experience managing their health. Being able to receive health care typically requires government identification, insurance coverage, a mailing address, contact information, coordination with other members of your health care team, transportation—and that’s all before you even attend the appointment.

Casey House’s social service workers (SSWs) help clients navigate administrative systems to find resources. Their relationships with clients begin during the intake process. when discussing what goals they hope to achieve. From there, clients can book appointments or attend drop-in hours to work on their objectives with a member of the social work team. Drop-in appointments are especially useful for people without reliable contact information like a phone number or email address, so staff can make the most of a client’s presence on-site.

Nowadays, more social support services are online, which is difficult for people without a smartphone, computer, internet, or without the digital literacy skills to find resources. Once they access a form for a client, they decipher and relay institutional jargon, acronyms, and the filing processes into simple language. Additionally, many systems are intertwined with prerequisites. For example, applying for social housing or the Canadian Pension Plan requires a piece of Ontario photo identification, your tax return notice of assessment, and proof of Canadian citizenship. Even missing just one of these elements means working backwards with a new process to obtain the missing piece. This occurs with housing programs; financial services like Old Age Security, Canadian Pension Plan, and Ontario Disability Support Plan; applying for government identification; and registration for other community services. Each task is a larger puzzle to uncover, and the social service workers help people solve it.

For more complex situations that require in-depth knowledge, SSWs refer clients to housing support agencies, legal support, immigration services, or to an external dedicated case manager.

However, even when clients can access services from other organizations, sometimes they still need help advocating for themselves. It can be daunting for someone not well-versed in the health care sector to articulate their needs or expectations for standards of care, so it helps to have an intermediary ally on their side. Behind the scenes, SSWs also connect with external health providers to get status updates such as waitlist positions for procedures or booking follow-up appointments on their behalf. Navigating these formal and intricate systems can be difficult, so it’s a tremendous help to have support from an SSW that speaks your language—whether that’s using live-translation services for someone whose primary language is not English or even for those who are illiterate and require information verbally. Social service workers continually rise to the task of meeting people where they are at in order to provide care that has a meaningful impact.

Having a warm introduction by a social service worker to another clinician, such as a nurse, mental health clinician, or harm reduction worker, makes the hospital feel more communal rather than hostile. Contributing shared team knowledge about each client and demonstrating that knowledge means clinicians are not faceless names on an appointment booking system, they are people making personal connections and building trust with clients and community members.

“As someone that used to volunteer here at Casey House, I’m very fortunate and appreciate the opportunity to work here.”

– Darwin, SSW

Connecting clients to care can be life-altering. Specialized services covered by the Ontario Health Insurance Plan, like physiotherapy or psychiatry, can have new client waitlists that span multiple years for a first appointment. At Casey House, these wait times are significantly reduced. In one instance, a social service worker helped an aging client who became severely limited in mobility following a health incident.  After the SSW connected them to care from our physiotherapy and occupational therapy team, they were able to procure an automated mobility device. This improved their quality of life while also restoring their autonomy and ability to reengage with the world by being able to move once again. This process took mere months and the client transitioned from being homebound to independent trips outdoors.

“I really like the clients and community that we have, and the folks that we work with [at Casey House] are wonderful. I’m happy that I’m able to support the community”

– Taegan, SSW

Social service workers at Casey House possess diverse skillsets, not only in the services they provide but in their holistic approach. The SSW team provides compassionate, judgement-free care for everyone in the community. This includes folks that face increased stigma, like people who use substances or communities that are at higher risk of HIV. At Casey House, the social service team is always ready to welcome you with open arms, whenever you’re ready.

When someone arrives to use the SCS, staff bring them to one of the three private booths and provide any sterile equipment they may need for their session. Take-home harm reduction kits for safer substance use and safer sex are also available. After using their substances, clients are directed to the SCS lounge, where they can relax in comfortable seats with calming music and snacks as they are monitored for adverse effects.

If adverse symptoms appear, like low breathing rate or trouble breathing, the harm reduction team is quick to engage with a humanistic response. “Sometimes all we need to do is just keep the client engaged and encourage breathing, so we don’t have to jump to naloxone or get emergency medical services involved. It’s a more compassionate approach to actually engage with somebody rather than the carceral approach of flashing lights and vigorous sternal rubs,” says one harm reduction worker. However, if symptoms escalate towards an overdose, the team stabilizes the client, brings in a nurse to deploy oxygen or naloxone, and if needed, call for paramedics.

Adverse effects from substance use are so well managed in the SCS that in 2025-26, there were 1801 visits to Casey House’s inpatient and outpatient SCS, and amongst those there were only 8 overdoses, all of them successfully and safely managed by staff without EMS support.

Overdose management isn’t the only outcome. Harm reduction workers and peers build community and develop connection with clients. Staff and peers also chat with clients outside, in the lobby, or at lunch. Services are tailored to the needs of each individual, and harm reduction workers are nimble. Staff may call central intake for emergency shelter referrals to find someone a bed for the night; contact an external health provider to help them book an appointment; offer a shower and clean clothing; or act as a confidante to the successes, happenings, or struggles that clients are experiencing.

Toronto, ON – Casey House announces that starting in summer 2026, the specialty HIV hospital will be introducing interdisciplinary primary care that includes doctors and a nurse practitioner to its existing outpatient services. The clinical service expansion will connect Casey House’s client community of people living with and at risk of HIV to long-term comprehensive care. This project is executed in collaboration with Women’s Health in Women’s Hands and South Riverdale Community Health Centre as a part of Ontario’s Primary Care Action Plan.

Casey House provides medical and social services for people who are living with HIV and people from communities at increased risk for HIV due to population-based factors, behavioural risk, and those facing barriers such as mental health challenges, substance-use disorder, or being street-involved. Many of their clients are a part of the 1.9 million Ontarians who are unable to access primary care, and resort to unfixed services such as hospital emergency rooms, walk-in clinics, or community drop-in clinics for care. With this new addition of providers, Casey House will serve as a first point of contact for health care with its embedded approach to providing stigma-free, dignified care. Primary care clients will have the option of self-selecting other outpatient offerings such as nursing services, recreational therapy groups, and supervised consumption services, for full wraparound support.

“With this new chapter of primary care, our goal is to continue to build longitudinal relationships with clients that keeps them healthy and connected to prevention, screening, treatment, and health management. By providing low-barrier primary care, we can help keep people healthy and reduce the need for them to seek out care in emergency rooms and meaningfully re-engage folks back into the health care system with our judgement free care,” says Joanne Simons, CEO of Casey House.

Current Casey House clients will be identified for initial attachment, and community health partners will be encouraged to refer their clients age 18 years or older post-launch. Attachment to Casey House’s primary care team is set to begin in June with appointments beginning in summer 2026. For more information, visit caseyhouse.ca.

About Casey House

Casey House is unlike any other hospital. They are a specialty hospital in Toronto providing ground-breaking care to people living with and at risk of HIV. Together with their clients, staff, peers and volunteers, they strive to create an inclusive environment where everyone feels safe. Casey House offers a growing mix of inpatient, outpatient and community-based services that meet clients where they are in their individual journeys of health and wellness. Building on a legacy of advocacy and social justice, they actively dismantle barriers to care and safe living. Casey House provides a community and sense of belonging that connects people to care. The humanity of each client is at the heart of everything they do.

Set Smash Rally, a volleyball fundraising tournament in support of people living with and at risk of HIV

Toronto, ON – June 10, 2026 – Ten former Canadian Olympians and elite athletes will step on the court Saturday, June 13 as part of the inaugural Set Smash Rally in support of Casey House’s HIV health care.

This brand-new local event is a high-energy, one-day indoor volleyball tournament at Kerr Hall Gymnasium (Toronto Metropolitan University), where corporate teams celebrate their fundraising achievements by competing in short, action-packed games of volleyball.

Each corporate sponsored team has a captain and six or more additional players. Each team is linked with an Olympian or elite athlete to help coach them to the win. Morning and afternoon games are broken up with a hearty lunch and an engaging courtside chat by Olympic champions Mark Tewksbury and the honourable Marnie McBean in conversation with Casey House chief medical officer Ed Kucharski.

Mark Tewksbury says, “I’m thrilled to be participating in the inaugural Set Smash Rally for Casey House as co-honorary chair with my fellow Olympian, the Honourable Marnie McBean.  Casey House provides care and support for almost 1,000 clients every year, people in need of their stigma-free, compassionate approach. This tournament is an opportunity to celebrate fundraising through athletic play which, coming from sport, I love!”

When someone participates in Set Smash Rally, they’re not just staying active – they’re supporting life-changing health care at Casey House. In advance of game day Saturday, June 13, each player fundraises towards a team total. Funds raised through Set Smash Rally fuel the hospital’s inpatient and outpatient programs that meet people where they are in their individual health journey with dignity, compassion and respect. Gameplay participation helps ensure people living with and at risk of HIV receive the specialized care they deserve.

Through sport, Set Smash Rally aims to raise vital funds, celebrate community, and smash HIV stigma – while building a new tradition that champions health, dignity, and team spirit.

WHAT: Casey House’s Set Smash Rally volleyball tournament
WHEN: Saturday, June 13, 2026
WHERE: Kerr Hall gym, TMU, 379 Victoria St.
TIME:  9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
INFO: SetSmashRally.ca

Honorary co-chairs: Olympians Mark Tewskbury and the Honourable Marnie McBean

Athlete coaches: Heather Bansley, Daniel Dearing, Crystal Emmanuel, John Epping, Nikkita Holder, Monique Kavelaars, Kristina May (Valjas)

Media Contacts

Lisa McDonald
Director, Communications & Public Policy
lmcdonald@caseyhouse.ca | 416-962-4040 ext. 4006 | 647-224-4415

Chanel Attema
Communications Advisor
cattema@caseyhouse.ca

About Casey House: Casey House is unlike any other hospital. They are a specialty hospital in Toronto providing ground-breaking care to people living with and at risk of HIV. Together with their clients, staff, peers and volunteers, they strive to create an inclusive environment where everyone feels safe. The hospital offers a growing mix of inpatient, outpatient and community-based services that meet clients where they are in their individual journeys of health and wellness. Building on a legacy of advocacy and social justice, they actively dismantle barriers to care and safe living. Casey House provides a community and sense of belonging that connects people to care. The humanity of each client is at the heart of everything they do. Caseyhouse.ca

In this nursing week spotlight, we’re introducing Christene, director of clinical services at Casey House. Christene oversees programs and clinical offerings provided by both the outpatient and inpatient teams.

Christene initially started her career with one goal in mind: to become an emergency room nurse. As a student, she seized every opportunity to achieve this, including taking on extra educational courses and training. She succeeded in getting an emergency room nurse role upon graduating, and after moving to a bigger hospital in Toronto, she quickly climbed the ranks to new positions with her continued resolve. Over the years, Christene has worked as an emergency and trauma room nurse, charge nurse, occupational health and safety nurse, and an organ donation coordinator, before being promoted to leadership positions.

Looking back, Christene cites her drive and initiative as key factors to her success. There was not a specific pathway through her journey, she found new opportunities, and the more she raised her hand the more she got her foot in the door working on new projects. She grew and learned from those experiences, eventually acquiring more skills. Simultaneously, Christene enrolled in more professional education programs for pediatric life support, advanced care life support, and business courses like finance and management, before she ultimately acquired her master’s degree in nursing. Christene’s perspective on her ongoing journey of upgrading her abilities was that no one else was going to do it for her – she had to go out and reach for it herself. Her hard work did not go unnoticed, her mentor and fellow colleagues nominated her to new positions as a supervisor and manager; and at Casey House, she now acts as a director.

While she no longer attends to bedside nursing duties, Christene uses her perspective as a nurse to inform her approach to leadership. Nurses have frontline experience with clients and work with diverse peers in a variety of disciplines. Having a solid foundation of clinical best practices keeps Christene grounded as a leader.

“Anybody can be a leader. Sometimes, people are leaders without even realizing it,” says Christine. “At the end of the day, you gain a list of experiences and opportunities that help shape you and help guide you to be ready for the next position.”

At Casey House, Christene finds that the best way to manage two diverse interdisciplinary teams – inpatient and outpatient – is to remain flexible and adaptive. Christene asks questions to understand best practices of each team and brings in her own history from working at different organizations to solve problems, make decisions, and find new strategies.

“I’ve been enjoying getting to know our clients and seeing how amazing our staff are: they support clients in so many different ways, going above and beyond. I’ve seen nursing staff offer to host painting sessions with clients, arrange special events for clients, or even stay late to attend events for clients. Casey House is a very special place.”

Thank you for being a part of our team Christene!

For Nursing Week 2026, we’re spotlighting nurses who work in different areas of Casey House. First up, meet Jamie, a charge nurse in the inpatient unit. Jamie was also the recipient of the first-annual Casey House Nursing Award in 2025.

Our inpatient unit has 14 private rooms for sub-acute stays requiring 24/7 care. Throughout an inpatient admission, nurses typically perform tasks like monitoring symptoms, conducting health assessments, and administering medication. Charge nurses have additional responsibilities in coordinating client admissions, appointments, and discharges, all while maintaining a leadership role supporting the other nurses, RPNs and health care aides in the unit.

One thing that Jamie appreciates at Casey House is our approach to connecting with clients. Nurses work collaboratively with clients to build trust, which includes supporting clients to identify their own goals and ensuring that they feel supported upon discharge. She says, “We’ve had some clients refer to us as family. You really get to know the clients. I think [Casey House is] different because [clients] aren’t just a number, they’re a person.”

For clients who use substances, Casey House’s proactive harm reduction approach allows them to be more comfortable during their stay and receive care in an accepting space. Jamie notes that inpatient nurses do it all – they build relationships with clients, maintain complex care plans, and work with a variety of different clinicians on the client’s care team.

While she had already been considering working in health care and was volunteering at SickKids Hospital. Jamie was inspired to become a nurse after meeting an incredible ICU nurse during her grandfather’s admission to hospital. When this nurse heard about Jamie’s interest, she showed Jamie the different functions and duties of the job. That sealed the deal for Jamie, she admired how the ICU nurse demonstrated not only medical skill, but compassion for both clients and their families.

From there, she completed her nursing student placement at Casey House, was hired for a full-time position, and worked her way up to charge nurse. Jamie’s exemplary skills were recognized with a nursing award last year. She was nominated by her colleagues, which she considers to be a real honour. As for the 2026 recipient? She says that they should be “caring, compassionate, and a good advocate. Someone who represents Casey House’s values while being passionate about nursing.”

Thank you for your years of dedication to our inpatient unit Jamie! We can’t wait to announce who will be the Casey House 2026 nursing award recipient.

In late January, Casey House gathered to celebrate the first-ever peer graduation ceremony, celebrating the outgoing cohort for their completion of two years of peer work. The departing fourteen peers collectively provided thousands of hours of client support guided by their lived experience, wisdom, skills, and a lot of heart.

Peers engage with clients to get a deeper understanding of their health status and build social connection. They work across all domains of the building, including outpatient, Blue Door Clinic, inpatient, and external accompaniments. Learn more about the peer program here.

During the ceremony, staff expressed their gratitude to the peers. They acknowledged how peers have built a safer landscape for clients to develop meaningful peer-client support connections and stronger clinical relationships. Many clients have experienced discrimination and trauma from health care institutions, so the warm guidance from peers enables clients to re-engage back with care providers. Similarly, most of our peers have experienced these traumas firsthand. We applaud the peers for their vulnerability and ability to channel their own lived experience towards counseling our clients.

Next, our peer coordinator shared kind words, client feedback, and anecdotes about each graduate. They walked across our stage and received a commemorative certificate. The room was filled with smiles, cheers, and joy as the group was celebrated.

So what’s next for our peers? Many go on to join different peer programs in the community or leverage the experience to find employment elsewhere. We are also pleased to announce that one graduating peer received a full scholarship to a community health worker program. It is bittersweet to bid these peers farewell. Though, some of them still access clinical services as clients or they are always welcomed to return and say hello. And, they pass on their torch to the incoming cohort of peers ready to make an impact.

Casey House peers are people with diverse lived experience who are trained to assist clients through their health journeys. Peer support provides social care which complements the multidisciplinary clinical team. Izi has been a peer since September 2025, and describes his journey to be one of healing and compassion.

Izi discovered Casey House during an exceptionally difficult period. As a person living with HIV, he experienced harsh stigma which led to depressive feelings and social isolation. Over many decades, loneliness persisted. Even in spaces that claimed to be supportive for those with HIV, Izi often felt completely isolated and misunderstood by others. Looking back, he wishes that he had a peer to support him during these times of heartache; someone who could understand his experience without judgement or explanation.

When he finally arrived at Casey House, Izi felt like he’d found his home, a place where people offered unconditional compassion and warmth. The entire team affirmed that even in his most fragile, broken moments, he still mattered. Afterwards, Izi felt empowered by his experience and wanted to support others who may have felt as alone as he did before Casey House. He doesn’t claim to be an expert, just a fellow human being who understands the power of presence, empathy, and respect in care.

As a peer, Izi’s work takes place in the intangible space that comes with social care. Oftentimes, he chats with clients or will accompany them to programs and services. Though the interactions may seem small—like listening, sharing a laugh, offering empathy and a shoulder to cry on—being present for a client lets them know they are valued here. Izi stands alongside clients to hold their pain and provide encouragement when they need it most. His favourite moments are when a client opens up after trust is built and they feel safe in his presence. Those breakthroughs reinforce his determination to help others as a peer.

Since joining the peer program, Izi has learned to value the importance of vulnerability. He has learned to become more patient, compassionate, and grounded; a client’s healing is not always linear, but sometimes just showing up is the bravest thing someone can do. He has heard from clients that his connections with them gives them hope, light, humour, and joy. One client in particular thanked Izi for seeing them as they truly are, unwavering. In reflection, Izi says the greatest mercy we can offer another human being is the simple, profound grace of witnessing their existence without flinching.

The peer program is significant for Izi because it fills the gaps unreached by traditional medicine. Healing can come from anywhere, and sometimes that powerful “medicine” comes from the human spirit. Izi says that peers don’t come with all the answers, but they stand as a testament to perseverance after surviving some truly dark depths. Being a peer is not just a role, it’s a commitment to showing up each day with love, courage, and understanding.

To learn more about the peer program, visit our website here.

Casey House peers are people with diverse lived experience who are trained to assist clients through their health journeys. Peer support provides social care which complements the multidisciplinary clinical team. Tom is member of the peer program, who works predominantly with our supervised consumption services (SCS).

Tom became a Casey House client in November 2024. He was referred to the outpatient program by his psychiatrist, who encouraged him to pursue social opportunities amidst his struggles with mental health and isolation. He joined several recreational therapy groups including yoga and music therapy. He also came for lunch on a daily basis, where he found fellowship among others who shared similar experiences and reasons for being clients at Casey House. He had noticed a group of people consistently chatting and sitting with client and asked a friend about them, who told him about the Casey House peer program and the upcoming enrollment of new peers. Tom submitted his application online, recounted his lived experience with the peer coordinator, which included substance use, and was accepted into the program in April 2025.

As a peer in the SCS, Tom spends his time building relationships with clients before and after they use substances by offering practical advice relating to harm reduction and friendly social support. Conversation topics can range from substance usage, personal relationships, life advice, other outpatient services at Casey House, and everything in between. Tom also assists the clinical staff monitoring clients in the SCS lounge in the event of an adverse reaction or overdose. Here, clients can enjoy snacks, warm drinks, or rest. Many clients who use the SCS are unhoused or have unstable lifestyles, so they appreciate having a reliable and safer place to use while seeing a familiar face.

Over the course of just a few months, Tom has interacted with many clients and witnessed the ups and downs of their lives alongside them. For those who return, he welcomes them without judgement and seeks to provide the best and safest possible experience using their substances. Tom values the opportunity to make deep connections with clients and says becoming a peer was a life changing moment for him–he finally found his purpose and his community thanks to this role.

Reflecting on his own experience, Tom recalls the unknown world he stepped into when he began using substances. There was no textbook on how to navigate substance use; supervised consumption sites and harm reduction principles did not formally exist yet. The challenges he encountered daily changed with his substance use, and the previous supports he had from his social circles, employer, and lifelong doctor were not able to help him effectively. It was during these difficult periods that Tom wishes he had a peer to guide him.

Tom wants more people to learn about the comprehensive care Casey House provides. He acknowledges the stark difference between learning about care through traditional modes of education and interacting face-to-face with clients. Tom feels part of the greater team that empowers clients to feel supported and resilient before returning to the outside world. “We don’t just provide needles, syringes, and alcohol pads [in the SCS], there’s a lot more to it. There’s warmth, heart, and a lot of love. That’s what the peer program is all about.”

To learn more about the peer program, visit our website here.