Communications

OHA Appears Before Senate Committee to Help Support National Plan for Mental Health and Addiction


Ontario Hospital Association
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Thursday, February 17, 2005

Toronto - Ensuring a national action plan on mental health, illness and addiction is developed to help standardize care across the country is a key recommendation being made today by Ontario’s hospitals at a panel discussion of the Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology, as Senators review responses to the issues and options presented in one of three reports recently produced by Senator Michael J. L Kirby, and members of the Committee.

"The OHA commends Senator Kirby and the Senate Committee for their in-depth review of mental health, mental illness and addiction, and sees it as a positive step in profiling the major issues impacting the provision of these services in Canada," said Dr. Paul Garfinkel, President and CEO of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, and Former Chair of the OHA Mental Health Working Group. "In order to truly enhance mental health and addiction treatment and care, we need to enhance health promotion, prevention and early intervention and continue to invest in community-based mental health care services."

Key issues highlighted by Dr. Garfinkel included:

  • The need for a single national action plan to ensure consistency in the quality of care provided across Canada, and the sharing of best practices
  • The need for increased federal funding to improve research and development into the causes of mental illness and models of care in treatment, as well as into the development of benchmarks to improve health system performance
  • The need for a national information system to measure the mental health status of Canadians, evaluate policies and services, and share information


The Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology is currently holding hearings to review the issues presented in the Senate Committee’s report, and "to launch a public debate to enable Canadians to provide input on how the issues should be addressed."

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