Mental Health and Addiction Report Lauded by Advocates

For Immediate Release - May 10, 2006 (Toronto) - The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), the Ontario Federation of Community Mental Health and Addiction programs (OFCMHAP) and the Canadian Mental Health Association, Ontario (CMHA–Ontario) welcomed the release of the Final Report of the Standing Senate Committee on Mental Health and Addictions today.

The Committee listened closely to the consumers of mental health and addiction services, and made a number of outstanding recommendations that have the potential to transform the way we treat these issues in our society. These include the creation of a Canadian Mental Health Commission with a mandate to help reform mental health policies, improve service delivery, promote wellness and diminish the stigma and discrimination faced by Canadians living with a mental illness and their families.

“The Out of the Shadows at Last” Report starts from the premise that mental health and addiction deserve the same serious treatment as physical health problems,” said CAMH President and CEO Paul Garfinkel today. “Senator Kirby, Senator Keon and the members of the Standing Committee are to be congratulated for tackling a number of difficult areas that are of vital importance to CAMH and the people with mental health and substance use problems we serve, issues such as the need for more affordable and supportive housing, the dearth of services for children and youth, concurrent disorders, the special concerns of Aboriginal and First Nations peoples, the need to integrate community and institutional services, and the need to refocus on addiction to legal drugs like alcohol, and legal practices like gambling.”

“CMHA strongly supports the establishment of a Commission that has the potential of establishing pan-Canadian standards for mental health,” said Karen McGrath, CEO of CMHA Ontario. “This will address the issue that Canada is the only G8 country without a national strategy for mental health and mental illness.”

“The support of self-help and peer support initiatives, particularly for people with addictions, is an important element of the Report,” said David Kelly Executive Director of the OFCMHAP. “The Committee’s recommendation of funding for a 'Basket of Community Services' that would assist provinces in providing people living with mental illness with a range of services and supports in the community is, of course, of real interest to us as well.”

The three organizations will be reviewing the report in detail in the days ahead and will make a more formal response.

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For any questions, please contact:

Karen McGrath, CMHA, Ontario, (416) 977-5580 ext. 4126; Michael Torres, CAMH, (416) 595-6015; David Kelly, OFCMHAP, (416) 490-8900 ext. 22