An environmental scan of mental health and mental illness in Atlantic Canada : Analyse du contexte de la santé mentale et de la maladie mentale au Canada Atlantique

FROM THE TIDES OF CHANGE v v i EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Much of the recent public and political discourse focused on mental health and mental illness has been informed by the work of the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology which last spring released Out of the Shadows at Last.1 The Senate Committee process provided an opportunity to bring together a number of perspectives, [...] Other identified opportunities included recognition of the use of population health approaches in health service planning and delivery, the development of provincial mental health and addiction strategies, the publicity the Kirby Report gave to mental health and mental illness in Canada and its place on the national agenda, and the focus on supporting immigration to Atlantic Canada. [...] The purpose of the scan is to: 1. determine the status of mental health in each of the four Atlantic provinces, including reliable estimates of prevalence, geographic distribution, and the characteristics of the population affected; 2. using a population health approach, analyse the relationship between social and economic inequities and the incidents of mental illness in the region; 3. identify g [...] Ultimately, the scan is to assist the Atlantic Regional Office of the Public Health Agency of Canada to develop effective prevention strategies that are grounded in a deep understanding of the pathways between inequity and mental health and mental illness, as well as the role of the community in addressing mental health and mental illness. [...] The consultant is to apply a gender lens to the interpretation of data and is to seek key informants to describe the issues and concerns of Aboriginal groups (such as Innu, Inuit, Métis, and Mi’kmaq), children and youth, immigrants, and seniors, as mental illness crosses gender, ethnicity, age, and social status.