Release
Department of Health
July 17, 2026
MONCTON (GNB) – The government and Vitalité Health Network have launched an initiative meant to strengthen mental health expertise and improve access to care.
PRISME – Program for Regional Interprofessional Specialization in Mental Health and Education – aims to strengthen training and collaboration across the health system, creating advanced learning opportunities for family physicians and nurse practitioners while connecting psychiatrists, educators, researchers and learners. Through university-recognized certifications, the program aims to build a more integrated and skilled mental health workforce.
A key feature will be a Moncton-based mental health primary care team working alongside psychiatrists. Three nurse practitioners and one family physician with advanced mental health and addictions training will support patients with moderate needs, provide short-term stabilization, and help ensure psychiatrists can focus on the most complex cases. Patients needing brief stabilization will receive short-term support before returning to their primary care provider with clear treatment recommendations and ongoing care plans.
The Moncton team will provide a care setting, as well as a hands-on training hub where primary care providers and learners from across the province can receive one-on-one mentorship and practical experience alongside psychiatric specialists, while also supporting patients in the region.
“Equipping primary care providers with strong mental health training helps them meet patients where they are at, and working closely with psychiatry will ensure patients receive co-ordinated, appropriate care across the system,” said Justice Minister Robert McKee, who is also minister responsible for addictions and mental health services. “PRISME will help us reduce psychiatry wait-lists and allow psychiatrists to focus their expertise on the most complex patients.”
By integrating psychiatry and primary care, PRISME aims to support improved access and more appropriate matching of patients to care providers.
“The demand for mental health services continues to grow, calling for innovative and collaborative solutions,” said Dr. France Desrosiers, president and CEO of Vitalité Health Network. “PRISME positions itself as a concrete and structural response to this challenge. It is a cornerstone of our network’s priorities and will eventually serve as a model that can be exported to other regions.”
The initiative was developed in partnership with the Université de Moncton and the Université de Sherbrooke, and will allow participants to receive mental health specialization certifications.
“The Centre de formation médicale du Nouveau-Brunswick is proud to be a partner in this project, which offers medical trainees interdisciplinary learning aligned with the mental health needs of our communities,” said Dr. Nicole LeBlanc, the centre’s director.
The initiative aligns with the government’s psychiatry resource strategy and broader efforts to recruit and retain health-care professionals.
17-07-26
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Media Contact(s)
Clarissa Andersen, communications, Department of Health, [email protected].