 |
|
NEW ASSOCIATE NATIONAL EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AT MDSC
Mood Disorders Society of Canada is happy to announce the appointment of Bill Gartland to the role of Associate National Executive Director for the national mental health organization.
“Considering the knowledge and leadership experience that he has achieved over the years, particularly within education and mental health, Bill will be a strong addition to our national team. Bill’s dedication to effective program development and service improvements will fit perfectly within our organization and its mandate and approach; we look forward to having Bill join our organization.” says Dave Gallson, National Executive Director.
|
|
MEDICATIONS AND YOU
Mood Disorders Society of Canada is proud to announce the launch of our latest in a series of public education resources, Medications and You book.
We know that one in five Canadians will have a mental illness or issue each year. Often, the first step is a discussion with a family physician or other health professional about the challenges that one is experiencing. When an individual, a family member or friend experience mental health issues, often medications are part of the recovery process. Through this book, it is our hope we can assist by providing Canadians with easy to understand information on medications.
People experiencing mental illness have to contend, not only with the illness, but with a complex journey through the medical and psychiatric systems. Most will be prescribed medications to help stabilize their symptoms so that they can take on the many challenges of getting well and staying well. But which medications? How are they expected to help? As people leave the doctor’s office with their prescription, they can feel on their own. This publication can accompany them. It takes them from diagnosis, to medication, to therapy and to discovering supports and relapse prevention strategies. It concentrates on four mental illnesses: major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The Medications and You book is intended to ease your journey with information and encouragement. MDSC is proud to provide free downloads of the book. Mental health groups, health care providers and others can purchase bulk orders of the book in hard copy.
|
|
Workplace Mental Health Guide
The MDSC Workplace Mental Health resource guide continues to be in high demand and it has received high acclaim for assisting countless organizations and companies address mental health in their workplaces. With over 25,000 electronic downloads and thousands of hard copies distributed, this guide, filled with links to free resources, tools and supports, is helping change workplaces across the country. This step by step book is your easy to follow guide on how to create a mentally healthy workplace and what to do to support your employees and managers. Your office or organization will benefit greatly by ordering hard copies for your managers and employees. It is a resource that everyone will value greatly. Order your hard copy today.
|
|
Please visit our website to discover more about our continuing education opportunities including:
|
PEER AND TRAUMA SUPPORT SERVICES UPDATE
The MDSC Peer and Trauma Support Systems (PATSS) Team facilitators Staff Sergeants (ret’d) Brad McKay and Syd Gravel, held a much demanded two-day Peer Support Training at The Trauma Centre, in Sharon, Ontario on Oct 12 and 13th with 19 participants from a variety of backgrounds and organizations throughout Canada. The PATSS program is having a significant impact, and we are thrilled to see that Brad and Syd have established a training centre in Fitzroy Harbour, Ontario. Their first workshop at this location will be held May 3rd & 4th, 2018. The team is also planning a workshop in Newmarket on March 1st & 2nd, 2018.
|
At this time of year when you are deciding on charitable donations, please consider choosing Mental Health as a Charity of your choice and please make a tax deductible donation online today! Is it quick and your donations will support the project stream you select. MDSC depends on your generosity to support our work in developing and providing effective programs and resources to serve Canadians from Coast to Coast.
You can also mail your donation to: Mood Disorders Society of Canada, 46 Hope Crescent, Belleville, ON K8P 4S2. We will mail you a charitable tax receipt for your donation.
|
|
TRANSITIONS TO COMMUNITIES
The Transitions to Communities (TTC) program has seen a very busy summer and significant activities over the past months. Program staff are honoured to be working with veterans and seeing great success together with incredible community partners to ensure veterans and others are accessing programs and supports that assist them in their goals of successful employment and returning to school. The program provides direct supports with a focus on employability skills, mental well-being and peer support. This is another innovative program which incorporates mental health knowledge and wellness maintenance into the daily lives of participants. Funded by the Government of Canada’s Opportunity Funds for Persons with Disabilities of Employment and Social Development Canada, the TTC program goal is to assist nearly 450 Canadians in three cities over 3 years who are experiencing obstacles you can learn more about the program HERE
|
We at the MDSC are excited that we will host the third national conference on Mental Health dedicated to Educators. The Canadian Educators Conference on Mental Health (CECMH) will return in the fall of 2018. The conference has brought educators together to address mental health issues and learn about how they impact students and staff. Some of the prior conference topics included depression, anxiety, traumatic injuries, resiliency, suicide, and eating disorders.
The third CECMH Conference will take place in Toronto. Educators from across Canada will gather for two days to hear leading experts discuss and present on a variety of Mental Health topics that impact on schools each and every day. This conference is about learning the most current effective practices and research. Delegates can expect to attend sessions that will include keynotes, panels and workshops that will provide them with concrete information and tools that they can use immediately upon their return to the workplace. Planning is underway and some topics being explored include: The Impact of Social Media on Mental Health, Traumatic Stress, Concussions, Depression, Anxiety, Staff Health and others.
As in previous conferences, there will be displays from a variety of associations and vendors with information and resources for delegates.
Visit the CECMH conference website in January for the date announcement and registration information. We look forward to seeing you at the conference!
|
With over 2.5 million visitors, depressionhurts.ca has become a significant resource for persons impacted by depression including their families, caregivers and health care providers. Offering information in four languages, this website has in-depth information, tools and supports. We are very proud to now have this website as part the MDSC family of resources. Please visit the website today and share this with family and friends.
|
|
|
|
Project Trauma Support (PTS) is a new Canadian program that addresses Post Traumatic Stress and Operational Stress Injury. The program is lead by a team consisting of mental health professionals, police and military officers who have extensive lived experience. PTS is a week-long concentrated program, for military, veterans and first responders who have had their lives ravaged by PTSD. The project offers cohorts of 12 persons, and it is seeing encouraging results. Dr. Manuela Joannou runs the program out of Perth ON. MDSC is very proud of the significant accomplishments the Project Trauma Support (PTS) program is achieving and we are very pleased to have them as part of the MDSC family of programs. With one program completed at the end of November and another one starting in mid December, the demand for this significant program is growing as the positive impact it is having is being recognized nationally. We thank the incredible True Patriot Love Foundation (TPLF) for providing financial assistance and encouragement which supports Veterans to participate in the program. TPLF your enthusiastic support is so very much appreciated!
Please visit the program web site HERE.
|
|
WHAT BETTER FEELS LIKE
We embarked on a project to learn from others who have “been there,” to understand what better feels like to them. Here, ten people who had experienced depression were interviewed to answer questions like: What is depression like? What are the signs of getting better? What helped and what didn’t? And what does better feel like? Through this, we can learn from each other. Read how others learned to recover and what worked for them. Watch these insightful videos and hear their stories personally from these inspiring people. Use the maintenance guide to help you in your recovery.
|
|
MOOD DISORDERS DISCUSSION FORUM
The MDSC Discussion Forum is a safe place for individuals to share any mental health concerns or issues they or a loved one is experiencing; ask questions and learn from others who are going through, or who have been through similar challenges. By joining the MDSC Discussion Forum, one can find help and support, read about how others are living with and managing mood disorders, connect with people by sharing your experience and offering your support — all from the privacy, and comfort of one’s own home and on your schedule.
|
The APEC Digital Hub for Mental Health is the coordinating centre for APEC’s work in mental health, bringing together government, public, and private sectors to share, develop, scale up and evaluate innovative evidence- and practice-based programs for mental health. The Digital Hub is hosted in Canada at the University of British Columbia (UBC), in collaboration with the University of Alberta (UA) and the Mood Disorders Society of Canada (MDSC). Core partners across the Asia-Pacific region support and contribute to the activities of the Digital Hub.
When the Canadian government attended the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, the Canada-led APEC Digital Hub for Mental Health proudly announced one of its first international collaborative projects and a $2.15 million grant to implement new ways to address mental illness in Canada and China.
MORE INFO
|
|
The Defeat Depression campaign sends our sincere appreciation to the 20,000+ supporters at over 90 event locations across Canada who raised close to $300,000 this year. Since the inception of the campaign, the dedicated participants and donors have enabled more than $1.4 million to be donated to local mental health services nationally. This campaign provides direct financial aid to a wide variety of mental health organizations/initiatives. This funding helps ensure much-needed programs and resources are available for Canadians affected by mental illness. We love the enthusiasm and dedication and thank everyone for their ongoing support.
We are now moving into our 7th year and with the successes we have seen, and following the advice from the feedback we received, we have some exciting campaign news being announced in early January! We are working on some sensational improvements that we know all you runners, walkers and bikers are going to love! Some big changes and innovative improvements to provide a fantastic event experience is coming your way very soon. We will be announcing these changes in a Defeat Depression newsletter to over 12,000 organization, businesses companies and stakeholders early in the New Year. We can give you a sneak peek (call it an early x-mas present)….it will include a new look, new logo, some great incentives and cool rewards that will recognize your efforts and will lead to a record fundraising year for local mental health services and programs! PLUS a whole lot more!!! Can’t wait to share this with you in January!!
|
|
|
|
ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM ANTI-STIGMA CAMPAIGN CONTINUES TO BATTLE STIGMA
The incredibly successful Elephant in the Room (EITR) anti-stigma campaign is partnering with so many new organizations, businesses and schools that we have had to order thousands of more elephants to keep up with demand! Universities, Colleges, Schools, Business, Governments Departments, Police Departments, Unions, Hospitals, Health Care Providers, Mental Health Organizations, Corporations; literally hundreds of organizations have now implemented the campaign into their workplaces. Our Elephants have even been flown to Ireland and the U.K. and they are making a significant impact!
Here are a few of the schools who have just recently adopted the EITR campaign:
- College Lorette Collegiate
- Lindsay Collegiate (LCVI)
- Bracebridge High School
- Appleby College
- Academy of Learning (Alberta campus)
- Red River College
The MDSC Elephant in the Room campaign changes the workplace environment; it is fun and very easy to start. If you don’t see the Blue Elephant on desks and walls in your workplace, your organizations needs to join the anti-stigma campaign to make your organization stigma-free, contact us or visit the website here and apply online. Great reduced prices for bulk orders! Individuals can Buy your own Elephant here: We will send it to you in its own travel case, with information on the campaign and your own Elephant in the Room Bracelet. Order right away for the holidays! MORE INFO
|
|
|
Canadians for Equitable Access to Depression Medication
Canadians for Equitable Access to Depression Medication wants all Canadians to have access to all depression medications. Members of the coalition from across Canada include mental health professionals, doctors, academics and people with lived experience. MDSC’s Phil Upshall co-chairs CEADM with Dr. Patrick Smith, the CEO of CMHA (national). More information can be found at CEADM’s web site.
|
|
|
ABOUT MDSC
The Mood Disorders Society of Canada (MDSC) was launched in 2001 to provide people with mood disorders, their families and caregivers a strong, cohesive voice at the national level on issues relating to mental health and mental illness. MDSC has evolved to become one of Canada’s best-connected mental health NGOs and aims to improve access to treatment, inform research, shape program development and government policy to improve the quality of life for people affected by mood disorders. The Society fulfills its mandate through an active partnership approach that engages like-minded organizations in the public, private and voluntary sectors. MDSC is engaged on an ongoing basis in a wide range of projects and initiatives designed to support the inclusion of persons with disabling mental illnesses in Canadian society and it has taken a lead proactive role in public policy and program development in many capacities on the national stage.
|
|
|
|
|
|
