The Waverley House Secure Care and Recovery Building

CAMH is one of North America’s leading mental health hospitals and one of the world’s top mental health research centres. We offer world-class programs and services to more than 37,000 unique patients a year. CAMH provides services to patients of all ages, across a wide range of illnesses. We focus on prevention, treatment and recovery.  

The CAMH forensic mental health program delivers care to people who come into contact with the law because of a mental illness. These individuals are sometimes referred to as “forensic patients” because they receive treatment in the forensic mental health program.

Authorized passes are standard in all forensic hospital programs and play a vital role in a patient’s recovery. Hospitals can only restrict a patient’s freedom of movement under very specific circumstances outlined in law. 

Yes. The goal of the forensic mental health care system is to help people recover so that they may reintegrate into the community. Passes are a well-established and routine practice in health care that is foundational to helping people recover. Authorized passes for patients are routine and happen daily at CAMH, and at every hospital. 

An unauthorized leave of absence (ULOA) occurs when a patient in a Forensic program does not return to the hospital on time from their authorized pass. Issues resulting from authorized passes in the forensic program are rare – in fact, one in 3,000 passes results in a forensic unauthorized leave of absence, and 1/3 of these are due to someone returning late. 

There is a myth that all people with mental illness are dangerous or violent. This is not true. Some people with mental illness can be violent, and so can people who do not have a mental illness. People with mental illness also experience violence at the hands of others. 

The risk that someone will be violent because of their mental illness can depend on whether they are receiving treatment for their illness. People receive health care treatment in the forensic program. Some people in the forensic mental health system are there as a result of a nonviolent offence such as mischief, theft or breaching a court order. 

We’re in the process of building a new forensic building to replace existing facilities. Space is limited in the old, institutional building that was not purpose built for modern concepts of forensic health care.

The Waverley House Secure Care & Recovery building will replace existing and outdated structures and will better support our patients in their recovery, ultimately making our community safer and healthier.  

The design of the building will allow for new physical, procedural and relational security measures – a best-in-class approach to safety appropriate for a high-risk healthcare facility. An improved lobby will allow for better monitoring for all who enter and exit the building. Increased levels of programming will take place within the secure perimeter of the building. 

To address the unmet need for forensic mental health care in Toronto, the new Waverley House Secure Care & Recovery building will have 214 inpatient beds. This represents an increase of 22 beds. This increase in inpatient beds will better support the unmet need for forensic mental health care, ultimately making the community safer.