Student mental health in a postsecondary context is an important topic. There has been a lot of work done to explore how to support diverse students to be well including the Post Secondary Standard and the Okanagan Charter. It can be a challenging time for people with a variety of stressors affecting them in different ways across diverse student populations. Today we are joined by Jeff Agate, the Associate Director of Student Support Services at Algonquin College in Ottawa for a conversation...

The OAAT Series: Single-session therapy (SST), sometimes called one-at-a-Time therapy, has been around for a while. It has been steadily gaining attention among providers and service delivery systems. SST can have tremendous impacts in different contexts, with proven waitlist reductions and positive outcomes for many people. It is based on the assumption that something helpful can happen in one interaction.  The thing is, SST is an important approach because many people can only attend or...

As a part of a CIHR grant, the province of New Brunswick embarked on the implementation of SC2.0 in 2019. The provincial implementation began with implementing OAAT across the province. The impacts were evident. With decreased waitlists and both positive client and provider feedback, the province of New Brunswick is well on their way to creating a person-centric open-access mental health, addictions and substance use health system. Today we are joined by Bernie Goguen, the Director of Adult...

Like many other provinces and territories, the Northwest Territories had one pathway for people seeking support for their mental health.  Recognizing that people have diverse needs and their journeys are not always linear, the territory explored a new way of doing things to help more people get the support they need when needed. Drawn to its intuitive approach, in 2020, NWT made the decision to start implementing Stepped Care 2.0. The transformation began, and the system started to shift....

Peer Support is an integral part of effective, person-centric, recovery-oriented mental health, substance use and addictions systems. With a unique ability to empathize with people seeking support for their mental health, substance use health or addictions concerns, peer support offers incredible value across the system to enhance the well-being of people and communities. Peer supporters play a major role in proactive approaches, meaningful workshops and groups, and can support navigation...

Achieving a vision of wellbeing everywhere may seem lofty, but there are so many amazing people and organizations that work throughout systems that are making it happen.  The complexities of life often create situations, feelings and responses that are difficult for us to truly understand.  Substance use has traditionally held a lot of stigma within systems and also on individual and personal levels.  Putting people first is an important part of moving toward wellness, and acknowledging and...

Recovery in SC2.0 is conceptualized as a diverse set of principles, values, and practices that aim to empower people experiencing mental health challenges along with their families and communities. This term Recovery for our purposes is intended to capture a deeply personal journey that looks different for each person and is guided by choice, preference, and readiness. It recognizes that there is no end-point and that there can be ups and downs that look and feel different in each person’s...

When we think about co-design in approaching mental health systems development and change we can think of it as an iterative process of bringing together a variety of people with a diverse range of perspectives, interests, and expertise.  These different people might be involved in the implementation of systems change or an approach like SC2.0 or they can be those who are affected by system change.  Their knowledge and experiences with system interactions are crucial to collaboratively...

In this podcast, we will explore the intentional efforts of Stepped Care 2.0 (SC2.0), infusing social justice into the fabric of its client-centric model of practice and challenges/barriers that impact diversity, equity and inclusion. We will also discuss how reconceptualizing the way we think about equitable systems can help us take new and meaningful approaches to address the ‘human’ element of the system and avoid repeating the same mistakes of the past in new ways. Synergy is defined...

Mental health and wellness along with things like self-care have become commonplace topics on social media, the news and in other online sources.  We talk more openly about self-care and wellness at work, at school and in our families. All great things to reducing stigma around mental health problems and making sure people who need help can get it. It does however present some challenges in effectively navigating the mental health and addictions system.  There are so many apps, sites, and...

In this episode we are joined by Dr. Peter Cornish to discuss the barriers to accessing mental health support and some ideas for overcoming them. Background:  A 2020 research article by Moroz et al.(2020) highlights the need for increased access to Mental Health and Addiction Services in Canada along with some of the barriers people face when accessing support for their mental health. In 2018, an estimated 5.3 million Canadians reported they needed support for their mental health in the...