Community Healing Days
Community Healing Days (CHD) was born out of collaboration between Millie Tresierra (FCC), Courtney Kirkby (Tiger Lotus Coop) and Chris Mainella (PhyisioAlternative), to bring accessible alternative/complementary health care to different locations around the city. The objective was to offer the community access to alternative healthcare therapies and modalities.
In 2022-2023, with funding from the SHIFT Centre for Social Transformation, we offered our low-cost or free monthly health CHD clinics, providing alternative and traditional therapies to marginalized and vulnerable communities. These clinics create an immediate impact in the lives of participants, and provide a means to gather measurable data on the healthcare needs of participating communities, to inform research aimed at influencing the public health system to incorporate more alternative therapies for a more sustainable and integrated model of care in Quebec.
Now, going into 2024, we continue to be supported by Shift and will be launching three specialist clinics (perinatal, menstrual/reproductive, trans) in addition to our monthly offering. As the project grows we are continually exploring the needs of the communities we serve, also extending our care in collaboration with community organizations in the Estrie region.
Within our allopathic-centric health care system, access to alternative, hands-based healing modalities is available mainly to those who have the privilege to benefit from private insurance or considerable wealth. While these services have a long history of offering holistic support to physical and mental wellness, they are not within the reach of vulnerable populations.
Our project offers a bridge between private and public healthcare models, with the goal of providing accessibility to integrated healthcare for marginalized communities. We hope to create a sustainable model, replicable throughout Montréal and beyond. We see the need to change the narrative that these therapies are only available for those who can afford them. Hands-on modalities are, after all, embedded into many cultures, and have been made exclusive in today’s society, often under the guise of the “wellness” industry.
To register for an upcoming CHD follow this link:
For more information on CHD please email us at montrealcommunityhealing@gmail.com
To donate to Community Healing Days click on the link below
https://www.tigerlotuscoop.com/about-4-2
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