Gregarious Fund: Free Mental Health

Dear Friend,

Thank you for taking a moment to view The Gregarious Fund. Grigore Counselling is attempting to start a "pay-it-forward" trend which will help to provide access for professional-level mental health services for those who otherwise could not afford the help they need.

Our Mission:

Assist those who cannot afford the cost of mental health services with an opportunity to receive the professional-level help they need.
​
The Problem:

Part of the problem for the difficulty of many to access the services they need is due to mental health counselling not being recognized as a "health or medical service" by the BC government. Unlike a physical health service like going to your family doctor, or being admitted to the hospital, mental health treatment is a private service.

Most counsellors offer a sliding scale option built into their pricing model, but not many (to my knowledge) provide free counselling as an option for those in need.  This unfortunately means that mental health counselling must remain a private venture for those who recognize they wish to improve their lives through counselling. (Often those who cannot afford treatment, need it the most.)

The difficulty for many private practice counselling clinicians is that it is expensive to run a small business, and unless we have been working for several decades, many of us have student debt to repay (the cost of working in the field). Unfortunately, this means that we must keep our prices high in order to keep afloat, and the effect is that less people can afford access to services.

I wish to encourage as many mental health counsellors as possible to include at least one pro-bono client they work with at all times. As part of the Gregarious Fund (where your donation will help), I wish to provide that counsellor with compensation to provide this service to at least one person in need, without the counsellor experiencing financial distress in offering the service.

This separate initiative seeks to accomplish several goals in the "Pay-it-Forward" philosophy:

​
First, we hope to perfect a model within Grigore Counselling that proves that with the charity of others, this counselling practice can support at least one pro-bono client at any given time.

Second, we hope that with continued support from our beloved donors, we can extend this philanthropic opportunity to other counsellors throughout British Columbia, to assist private practitioners with the ability to offer free counselling to at least one client who is in need.

Third, following the successful implementation of the previous goal, we wish to register this fund as a charitable organization, and provide this service throughout Canada, to any area which does not have access to publicly funded counselling treatment.

I believe this model will be successful in providing many individuals with the care they need, and will become a beacon for positive social change.

I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your compassion. 

With care and respect,

Robert A. Grigore, MCP, RCC (#12316)
Certified EMDR Therapist & Registered Clinical Counsellor
Grigore Counselling
Owner & Psychotherapist
470 Granville St.
Vancouver, BC.
V6C 1V4

Phone: 1-778-883-4819

Email: [email redacted]

&

[email redacted]