Welcoming Remarks for
Louise Bradley President & CEO
Mental Health Commission of Canada
For delivery at the
International Initiative for Mental Health Leadership (IIMHL) 2015 Leadership Exchange
“Accelerating Change Toward Mental Health, Well-Being and Inclusion”
Vancouver, British Columbia September 24, 2015
Good morning, and a warm Canadian welcome to the combined International Initiative for Mental Health Leadership (IIMHL) and the International Initiative for Disability Leadership (IIDL) 2015 Leadership Exchange.
I want to extend special greetings to our international delegates, and my appreciation to our hosts here in the beautiful City of Vancouver.
Firstly, I want to acknowledge the Coast Salish people, on whose traditional territory we are meeting. I also want to thank Elder Woody Morrison for the opening prayer.
The municipality and local residents have pulled out all the stops to make this a first- rate meeting location. I have no doubt Vancouverites have put out their west coast welcome mat to make you feel right at home.
Today, we’re gathering in a place that reflects many of our shared priorities. Vancouver was one of five demonstration sites for the MHCC’s ground-breaking At Home/Chez Soi research project. The city has also led the way in improving interactions between police and people with lived experience of mental illness. So I am very pleased to welcome you to a city that has embraced mental health best practices.
Nous nous réunissons aujourd’hui dans un lieu qui reflète plusieurs de nos priorités communes. Vancouver faisait en effet partie des cinq sites d’essai de notre projet de recherche novateur Chez Soi. La ville a également joué un rôle de premier plan dans l’amélioration des interactions entre les forces policières et les personnes aux prises avec une maladie mentale. C’est pourquoi je suis particulièrement heureuse de vous accueillir ici, dans une ville qui a adopté des pratiques exemplaires en matière de santé mentale.
It’s my privilege to recognize representatives of the eight sponsoring countries of the IIMHL – Australia, New Zealand, England, the Republic of Ireland, Scotland, Sweden, the United States and, of course, Canada. It’s nice to see so many familiar faces, and to welcome some new ones.
Today, I have the pleasure of acknowledging an exciting development for the
International Initiative for Disability Leadership. This year, Canada and Australia have joined Ireland and New Zealand as country members in the IIDL. I know this partnership will continue to grow and strengthen, given our many shared priorities.
My colleagues at the Mental Health Commission of Canada and I are delighted you have joined us for this unique global forum.
Anyone who has attended past events knows they provide a wonderful opportunity to network with international partners and take part in an enriching exchange of ideas, experiences and research.
Ultimately, we are all here because we want to make things better for real people.
While our countries may be different, they have a lot in common when it comes to mental health.
The IIMHL allows us to gather together and use whatever means - borrowed, stolen or otherwise – to make improvements.
Au bout du compte, nous sommes tous ici parce que nous voulons améliorer la vie des gens ordinaires. Aussi différents nos pays puissent-ils être les uns des autres, ils ont aussi beaucoup en commun sur le plan de la santé mentale.
L’IIMHL est l’occasion de nous réunir pour apporter des améliorations chez nous par tous les moyens, que ce soit en les copiant, en les imitant ou en les empruntant.
One of the areas the Commission has prioritized is growing the talent pool of mental health champions and emerging leaders. This was a hot topic in Manchester last year, and I know we are not alone in setting this objective.
As this year’s hosts, it’s my honour to kick-off our meeting by telling you about some of Canada’s accomplishments since we last met.
During the 30 matches that have taken place so far, we all benefited from the sharing of best practices. I had the privilege of attending the Match on Reconciliation, which is a very important topic facing Canada at this time. I learned so much and I want to thank the hosts for putting on a very meaningful event.
Over the next two days we’ll hear more about the inroads being made across the globe.
As I mentioned, engaging young people is an item on our shared agenda. So you may be interested to learn about the creation of a youth version of our country’s mental health strategy, Changing Directions, Changing Lives.
Comme je l’ai mentionné, la mobilisation des jeunes est inscrite à nos ordres du jour respectifs. La version jeunesse de notre stratégie nationale en matière de santé mentale, Changer les orientations, changer des vies, pourrait vous intéresser.
Of course the Strategy itself was the beneficiary of international input – many of you in this room weighed in during its creation and generously offered feedback and input.
But in order to ensure it reaches the greatest number of Canadians, particularly youth, the Commission decided to put a fresh spin on it.
While this priority is not unique to Canada – I do believe we have taken a unique approach to addressing it.
The Youth Strategy, as we call it, is designed with the specific needs of young people in mind. It puts an emphasis on early intervention and recovery.
It was produced by the MHCC’s Youth Council, which is made up of people aged 17 to 30 with lived experience of a mental health problem or mental illness – either personally or with a family member.
The Youth Council members drew on their experiences and instincts to interpret a complex policy document through a youth lens.
La Stratégie jeunesse, comme nous l’appelons, est taillée sur mesure pour répondre aux besoins des jeunes. Elle mise sur l’intervention précoce et le rétablissement.
Elle a été produite par le Conseil des jeunes de la Commission, qui est composé de personnes âgées de 17 à 30 ans ayant un vécu d’un problème de santé mentale, soit à titre personnel ou par l’expérience d’un membre de leur famille.
Ces jeunes se sont basés sur leur expérience et sur leur instinct pour interpréter un document de politique complexe selon une perspective jeunesse.
Now written in plain language, and featuring appealing graphics, it’s a document that will be of great benefit to ALL Canadians. They have taken a complex document and turned it into a very easy to read format. I was so impressed with their work that everyone at the Commission is worried I will ask the Youth Council to translate all our documents! I even agreed to have my usual photo replaced with one in caricature form!
To our knowledge, never before has a group of Canadian youth designed a project of this scope or contributed to knowledge exchange by translating a policy document written for and by adults.
Harnessing the power and positivity of our young people is a goal I know we all share.
À notre connaissance, c’était la première fois qu’un groupe de jeunes Canadiens concevait un projet de cette envergure ou apportait une contribution au domaine de l’échange des connaissances en adaptant un document de politique rédigé
principalement par et pour des adultes.
Je sais que tirer profit du dynamisme et du positivisme de nos jeunes est un objectif que nous avons tous en commun.
And that is exactly what the Commission has done with our game-changing
HEADSTRONG summits, which are mobilizing youth across the country to confront mental health stigma head-on.
Of course, I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge the Republic of Ireland’s own Headstrong program – the National Centre for Youth Mental Health – which is engaged in many laudable goals, including changing perceptions.
Here in Canada, our HEADSTRONG program is also a national effort. A key part of the Commission’s Opening Minds anti-stigma program, HEADSTRONG acts as a catalyst and coordinating agent among community groups, schools and youth. But few things are more powerful than having young people hear stories of recovery and hope directly from their peers living with a mental illness.
Ici, au Canada, notre programme La tête haute est également un effort national.
Composante clé de l’initiative de lutte à la stigmatisation Changer les mentalités de la Commission, La tête haute se veut un catalyseur et un vecteur de coordination auprès d’organismes locaux, d’écoles et de jeunes. Mais peu d’initiatives ont autant de
résonance chez les jeunes que d’entendre des récits de rétablissement et d’espoir par des pairs qui vivent avec leur maladie mentale.
And while engaging young people is paramount, ultimately the Commission is striving to involve ALL Canadians in our foundational work.
That’s why our Knowledge Exchange Centre has been working with a research team from the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario. Together, we are producing the final draft of a report outlining the current state of policies and practices focused on
transitioning from child and youth to adult mental health and addiction services.
We’ve already released an executive summary, called Taking the Next Step Forward:
Building a Responsive Mental Health and Addictions System for Emerging Adults. It advances a range of recommendations for a seamless continuum of services for this age group.
C’est pourquoi notre Centre d’échange des connaissances collabore avec une équipe de recherche du Centre hospitalier pour enfants de l’est de l’Ontario. Ensemble, nous travaillons à achever le rapport final qui détaille l’état actuel des politiques et des pratiques en matière de transition des jeunes vers des services de santé mentale et de traitement des toxicomanies pour adultes.
Nous avons déjà publié un résumé intitulé Faire un pas vers le futur : Bâtir un système de services en santé mentale et en toxicomanie adapté aux besoins des adultes émergents.
Ce document contient un éventail de recommandations visant à mettre en place un continuum de services s’adressant à ce groupe d’âge.
Many of the suggestions are informed by work being done by our international partners.
Australia’s Headspace program, for instance, will have 90 storefront sites by the end of 2015. These one-stop centres are highly visible, non-stigmatizing, first contact points for young people experiencing mental health concerns. These youth-friendly spaces and service models respond to emerging adults’ cultural, social, and developmental needs.
In November, the MHCC will lead a seminal consensus conference, stemming from this report, to engage our provincial and territorial government partners, policy makers and practitioners in follow-up action.
En novembre, la Commission dirigera une conférence de consensus déterminante découlant de ce rapport, dans le but d’amener nos partenaires des gouvernements provinciaux et territoriaux, les décideurs et les praticiens à entreprendre des mesures de suivi.
These efforts have not gone unnoticed.
As a vote of confidence in our progress on these and many other files, the Government of Canada recently renewed the Commission’s mandate for another 10 years, beginning in 2017. We are ready and eager to seize this opportunity.
Of course, to achieve our mental health goals – for people of all ages – we will need a new generation of leaders. Individuals who can lift research and recommendations
from policy papers and action plans and transform them into tangible results for people living with mental illnesses.
Évidemment, pour atteindre nos objectifs en matière de santé mentale pour les
personnes de tout âge, nous devrons compter sur une nouvelle génération de leaders.
Des individus capables d’extraire les conclusions de recherche et les recommandations de divers documents de politique et plans d’action afin de les transposer en résultats concrets pour les personnes souffrant de maladie mentale.
That’s why I am keen to host the Whistler Workshop, which will hone the skills and talents required of emerging mental health leaders. I am proud that Canada will be taking the lead on topics ranging from community action for suicide prevention, to workplace mental health and Mental Health First Aid.
Speaking of leadership, one of the biggest changes that’s happened at the MHCC this past year is the passing of the torch from our dear friend, Dr. David Goldbloom, to our new chair, the Honourable Michael Wilson.
We are very fortunate to benefit from his intellect and breadth of experience. His professional accomplishments are too numerous to count. But here’s an executive summary.
In addition to chairing our board, Michael is also the current Chairman of Barclays Capital Canada Inc., which benefits from his 37 years in the investment business.
From 2006 to 2009, he was Canada’s 22nd Ambassador to the United States.
But most Canadians remember Michael Wilson as a Member of Parliament and Cabinet Minister in the Government of Canada in the l980s and 1990s. He served as the
Minister of Finance, the Minister of Industry, Science and Technology, as well as the Minister for International Trade.
During his tenure as a member of Cabinet, Michael had responsibility for the North American Free Trade Agreements negotiations. He also represented Canada at the G-7, IMF, World Bank, OECD, GATT and other international bodies.
Over and above his impressive achievements in the private and public sectors, it is his strength of character and deeply rooted passion for mental health that I most admire.
Michael Wilson has been a tireless volunteer and advocate for multiple charities for many years, including the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health – one of Canada’s foremost mental health facilities.
Working with him inspires me to push harder, reach higher and ask for more.
Those are the true attributes of a leader. And what we must continue to cultivate among tomorrow’s leaders across the mental health spectrum.
I know Michael’s insights and experience will enrich our global dialogue. We are indeed fortunate to count him among our membership.
Please join me in welcoming the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Mental Health Commission of Canada, the Honourable Michael Wilson.
