This page lists upcoming and recent events relating to mental health, mental illness and schools.

If you would like to change this page or other pages in this wiki by adding additional references and links, you will need to join this wiki (no charge, no spam) To do so, click on the "Join this Wiki" button from the Home Page or contact info@cash-aces.caYou don't need to join the wiki if you want to comment on materials listed or linked here or to ask a question of the members of this wiki-community, we invite you to do so by selecting the Discussion Forum in the Navigation Bar on the left hand side of these pages.

Upcoming Events:



Items of Interest:

The Calgary-based Whole School Mental Health Promotion has a series of reports and papers of interest, including:

• full project process report: “The Whole School Mental Health Promotion Pilot Project : 2004 – 2008 : Process Report “ Principal author - K Dutton , WSMHP Facilitator Contributing Author - Catherine Morrison, Calgary Region Network Manager Both authors : Southern Alberta Child & Youth Health Network, Alberta Health Services, Canada Available from: http://www.sacyhn.ca/media/pdf/wsmhppp_process_report.pdf

• The first published article:“Learning from Turbulent, Real-World Practice: Insights from a Whole-School Mental Health Promotion Project” Darlene Omstead1, Claudia Canales1, Rosemary Perry1, Ken Dutton2, Catherine Morrison2 & Penelope Hawe1 In: ‘Advances in School Mental Health Promotion’, Vol 2, (2) - April 2009 © The Clifford Beers Foundation & University of Maryland 1Population Health Intervention Research Centre, University of Calgary, Canada 2Southern Alberta Child and Youth Health Network, Alberta Health Services, Canada Available from: http://www.schoolmentalhealth.co.uk/adv_2009.htm

• The evaluation report: “Whole School Mental Health Promotion Pilot Project Evaluation Report January 2009.” Rosemary Perry, Anita Blackstaffe, Gavin McCormack, Alberto Nettel-Aguirre & Penelope Hawe. All authors from Population Health Intervention Research Centre, University of Calgary, Canada Available from: http://www.sacyhn.ca/media/pdf/wsmhpp_evaluation_report.pdf

• Second article (presently pending publication decision with ‘Journal of School Health’) “Surfacing how existing curriculum supports children's mental health: Grades K-9” Principal author - K Dutton , WSMHP Facilitator Contributing Author - Catherine Morrison, Calgary Region Network Manager Both authors : Southern Alberta Child & Youth Health Network, Alberta Health Services, Canada Available from: (publisher’s decision pending)

Positive or good mental health is more than just the absence of a mental illness. In fact, according to a new report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), people reporting higher levels of positive mental health also report better physical health and fewer days of reduced activity. The report examines five aspects of positive mental health, including:

• Life enjoyment;
• Coping ability;
• Emotional well-being;
• Spiritual values and well-being; and
• Social well-being and connectedness.

This is the first report of its kind in Canada to offer a comprehensive look at the role positive mental health plays in physical health, including what factors are associated with high levels of positive mental health. This report is the final in a series of three reports on mental health developed by the Canadian Population Health Initiative (CPHI), a department of CIHI, also looks at strategies and opportunities to promote positive mental health.

Mental Health Common Messages (http://www.ahln.ca/mhcommonmessages.cfm): The Alberta Healthy Living Network (AHLN) has developed these new resources that link common messages about mental health with common messages about active living, healthy eating and tobacco use. These mental health common messages are intended for use by practitioners working in the areas of health promotion and chronic disease prevention.


From: www.schoolmentalhealth.co.uk (Vol 2 Issue 1):
An Examination of Childhood Anxiety, Depression and Self-Esteem across Socioeconomic Groups: A Comparison Study between High and Low Socioeconomic Status School Communities
Lara Farrell, Anouk Sijbenga and Paula Barrett, pps 5-19 ABSTRACT: Anxiety and depression occur at alarmingly high rates in children and young people; hence the recent research and policy focus on school-based mental health promotion and prevention interventions. Currently, little is known about the level of risk between socio-economic school communities. While disadvantaged socio-economic status (SES) has long been identified as a particular risk factor for mental health problems, level of risk for anxiety and depression in different SES school communities has not been explored. This study explores the relationship between SES and anxiety and depression, as well as the protective factor self-esteem in children and young people. The results indicated that children in the low SES schools scored significantly higher on depression and lower on self-esteem than children in the high SES schools. Interestingly, and contrary to the hypotheses, children in the high SES school reported significantly higher anxiety than those in lower SES schools. The outcome of this research suggests that children from low SES schools may have a higher level of risk for depression with lower psychological protective factors, such as self-esteem, but this result was not evident for anxiety. Research exploring the risk for mental health disorders, as a function of SES school community, is important in terms of prevention programming.


From the US Center for Health and Health Care in Schools:
- The provision of mental health services in school-based centers is examined in the recent article, Schools Expand Mental Health Care from the January issue of Monitor on Psychology
- The Center's co-director, Olga Acosta Price, PhD, contributed to a recently released publication from The National Child Traumatic Stress Network titled Traumatic Grief in Military Children - Info for Educators. This booklet describes ways educators can provide support to children of military families who have experienced loss. A similar piece titled Traumatic Grief in Military Children - Info for Medical Providers is also available on our website.

The Mental Health Commission has just released an RFP for School-based Mental Health and Addictions Services, looking for a qualified individual or team to conduct a national and international assessment of the current state of mental health and addictions (MHA) services delivery in schools, ranging from prevention/promotion initiatives to integrated treatment systems. The proposal is due on January 30, 2009. For more information, go to http://www.mentalhealthcommission.ca/SiteCollectionDocuments/Jobs/RFP_Schoolbased%20MHA%20Services_Dec19.pdf. More information on the Mental Health Commission's work related to children and youth, see http://www.mentalhealthcommission.ca/English/Pages/ChildandYouth.aspx
A list of evidence-based programs were identified as part of the Center for School Mental Health’s National Survey of Expanded School Mental Health Programs (2007). 152 ESMH Programs from across the county responded to the survey. Only evidence-based programs that received at least one recognition on one of ten evidence-based program registries (see Center for School Mental Health Summary of Evidence Based Program Registries, 2008) were included in the table. The table was developed by Kerri Stiegler, B.A. and Nancy Lever, Ph.D., Center for School Mental Health, June 2008. The table is available online, www.schoolmentalhealth.org and http://csmh.umaryland.edu.
The Globe and Mail is doing another series on mental health. See: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/breakdown

The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning's research brief, Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) and Student Benefits: Implications for the Safe Schools/Healthy Students Core Elements provides an overview of their recent analysis of more than 700 research studies. According to the brief, school, family, and community programming designed to promote social and emotional learning in children lead to an overall improvement of 23% in students' social and emotional skills and an 11 percentile point gain in achievement test scores. The Canadian School Health Knowledge Network has a series of webinars, several related to SEL. For more see: http://www.safehealthyschools.org/webinars/schedule.htm.


Nine NY state agencies jointly develop plan for broad reform of public services for children (Oct/08) Heads of nine child-serving agencies have jointly submitted to the governor and legislature New York's first Children's Plan to improve the social and emotional well being of New York's children and their families. Key recommendations of the collaborative plan include: a) A focused attention to behavioral issues and emotional disturbance in settings such as pediatric offices, child care and schools, with mental health treatment in a back-up and support role; a shift toward more effective and less expensive early intervention and evidence-based preventive approaches, leading to a reduction in institutional costs; and the collaborative use of family-centered and parent-driven approaches. http://www.omh.state.ny.us/omhweb/News/pr_childrens_plan.html.

The BC based Alcohol and Drug Education Service has published their fall newsletters for parents and professionals (the latter addresses the issue of stress as a factor in substance abuse). See attached files below.

The ABC's of Mental Health is a web-based resource for teachers of grades SK to 8.See: http://www.hincksdellcrest.org/teacher-resource-project.html (based on Brock University et al related work: www.brocku.ca/teacherresource/ABC/).

Readers may be interested in a very new guidance publication from the UK (March 2008) (NICE Public Health Guidance 12: Promoting children’s social and emotional wellbeing in primary education). This major national piece of work also commissioned 3 substantive reviews of the literature on school-based work on mental health promotion, two of which are cited directly below, the third covering anti bullying and violence can also be accessed via the same website as the NICE guidelines.

The guideline
National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) (2008) NICE Public Health Guidance 12: Promoting children’s social and emotional wellbeing in primary education. NICE : London. [Retrievable July 2008 from : http://www.nice.org.uk/Guidance/PH12 ]
Two of the 3 reviews
Adi, Y., Kiloran, A., Janmohamed, K. and Stewart-Brown, S. (2007) Systematic review of the effectiveness of interventions to promote mental wellbeing in primary schools. Report 1: Universal approaches which do not focus on violence or bullying. University of Warwick- a NICE National Collaborating Centre. [Retrievable July 2008 from : http://www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/pdf/MentalWellbeingWarwickUniReview.pdf ]
Shucksmith, J., Summerbell, C., Jones, S. and Whittaker, V. (2007) Mental wellbeing of children in primary education (targeted/indicated activities) (Review 2). University of Teesside - a NICE National Collaborating Centre. [Retrievable July 2008 from : http://www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/pdf/MentalWellbeingTeesideReview.pdf ]


Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (ON) recently launched its Mental Health and Addiction 101 tutorials - a series of 14 free web tutorials housed on CAMH.net that feature topics such as depression, addiction, older adults, stages of change and stigma. Tutorials are free and open to all interested. See: www.camh.net (http://www.camh.net/mha101/).


Globe & Mail Series on Mental Health
The series on mental health being published by the Globe & Mail can be found at:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/breakdown

Symposium on Mental Health Stigma
The Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC) and the Hotchkiss Brain Institute (HBI) presented a joint symposium and roundtable on "Stigma in Mental Health and Addiction" yesterday (June 3, 2008). About 100 people representing many areas of the mental health field - from stakeholders and service providers to scientists and clinicians - attended the conference at the University of Calgary. The conference featured four of the world’s leading experts on stigma research; Dr. Pat Corrigan (U.S.), Dr. Graham Thornicroft (U.K.), Dr. Otto Wahl (U.S.) and Dr. Bruce Link (U.S.). Those in attendance also heard from Order of Canada recipient Dr. Austin Mardon (CDN) about his personal journey with schizophrenia. The presentations were followed by a roundtable discussion moderated by Commission Chair, Michael Kirby. The talks centered on developing a plan to move forward with expanding stigma research capacity and evaluation in Canada. More than 20 people representing consumers, stakeholders, advocates, scientists, policy makers and MHCC Board members participated in the valuable discussions. A video presentation of the speakers and a report from the roundtable discussions will be available for viewing on a joint website produced for the conference by the Commission and the HBI, in about two weeks. You can access the website by clicking on this link: www.mentalhealthstigma.ca.

New Brunswickers will be involved in developing a provincial mental health strategy during consultations to be held around the province. Read more at: http://www.gnb.ca/cnb/news/he/2008e0750he.htm. Prior to beginning an extensive consultation, an issues and options paper will be developed based on an analysis of existing documentation and input from key stakeholders. Among the documents to be reviewed will be Out of the Shadows at Last, a report on mental illness released last year, written by Senator Michael Kirby, and Connecting the Dots, a report on youth-at-risk and youth with complex needs, released this year. To see that report go to: http://www.gnb.ca/Ombudsman.
Ministry of Children and Family Development has released a series of mental health resources for youth available online. They include: What are Child and Youth Mental Health Services, Dealing with Depression: Antidepressant Skills for Teens, Dual Diagnosis: A Guide for Families andWhat to Expect from your Family Physician in Children’s Mental Health. Also new: Child and Youth Mental Health Plan for B.C. - Progress Report 2008 (pdf). Visit http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/mental_health/publications.htm for a complete listing.

The eBulletin for May/June 2008 (Vol. 9(3)) entitled "Highlights from the 2007 OSDUHS Mental Health and Well-Being Report" is now available at:
http://www.camh.net/Research/Areas_of_research/Population_Life_Course_Studies/eBulletins/research_population_ebulletins.html





Events
Alberta Mental Health Research Showcase and pre-conference workshop on School-based Mental Health: see http://www.buksa.com/showcase/program.aspx#nov18. Wednesday, November 19 to Friday, November 21, 2008 in Banff, Alberta

Expanding Our Horizons: Moving Mental Health and Wellness Promotion into the Mainstream: The Clifford Beers Foundation working in conjunction with The Mental Health Commission of Canada is pleased to announce an important international conference on the promotion of mental health and wellness, which will take place at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, March 4th - 6th 2009. For more see: http://www.toronto.cliffordbeersfoundation.co.uk/speakers.htm.

- New Resources:

The New Mentality (Youth Engagement Project) is a 24-month youth-driven pilot project, co-led by Children’s Mental Health Ontario and the Provincial Centre of Excellence for Child and Youth Mental Health at CHEO. Funding has just been secured (winter/08) to fund a comprehensive, arms-length investigation. For more see: www.kidsmentalhealth.ca.



Ready... Set... Engage! Building Effective Youth/Adult Partnerships for a Stronger Child and Youth Mental Health System: (Pereira, N. Toronto, ON, Canada: Children's Mental Health Ontario (November, 2007)) This report represents the First Phase of The New Mentality. Its findings offer solid insight into what the term 'Youth Engagement' (YE) actually means and how it can be put into practice. The report provides:
- definitions of YE and a review of the YE literature
- illustrations of how YE is being applied in child and youth mental health agencies across the province
- examples of how to: build youth-adult partnerships; support youth as decision makers; and identify roles that youth can assume within organizations.

Youth-Adult Engagement Qualitative Report Card (Youth Infusion): this report card can be accessed online at: www.youthinfusion.com/Documents/qualitative%20report%20card%20self%20assessment%20set.pdf


Click here to check out the new journal Advances in School Mental Health Promotion. From the Oct 08 issue -
From the Advances in School Mental Health Promotion (Volume 1, Issue 4 of the Journal (October 2008)) http://www.schoolmentalhealth.co.uk: “Implementing multi- level programmes and approaches that address student well- being and connectedness: factoring in the needs of the schools”. Nola Firth, Helen Butler, Sarah Drew, Andrea Krelle, Jeanie Sheffield, George Patton, Michelle Tollit, Lyndal Bond and the beyondblue project management team pps 14- 24. ABSTRACT: Implementation of effective school- level mental health promotion initiatives is challenging. This paper presents findings from the beyondblue schools research initiative, a cluster randomised trial which aimed to promote student mental health. For more on Beyondblue see: http://www.beyondblue.org.

From the School Mental Health Project,theCenter for Mental Health in Schools at UCLA is making its new publication available online. To dowload, click: Mental Health in School & School Improvement: Current Status, Concerns, and New Directions


From the School of Public Health & Health Services, George Washington University:

Psychotropic Drugs and Children: A 2007 Update (Dec. 2007) Recent increases in the use of psychotropic medications by children and adolescents, limited information on the benefits of these therapies for children, and concerns about the adverse consequences of certain drugs have prompted a growing disquiet. The Center for Health and Health Care in Schools has revised its fact sheet summarizing recent research and suggesting implications for school-based health care. Download the fact sheet http://www.healthinschools.org/News-Room/Fact-Sheets/Psychotropic.aspx


From the Research and Training Center on Family Support and Children's Mental Health (US) New Youth Participation handbook and quiz:

Youth Engagement: Is your organization supporting meaningful youth participation in collaborative team planning? http://www.rtc.pdx.edu/PDF/pbAMPQuizBrochure.pdf

Best practices for increasing meaningful youth participation in collaborative team planning http://www.rtc.pdx.edu/PDF/pbAMPYouthParticipation.pdf

From the US Department of Health & Human Services: Promotion and Prevention in Mental Health: Strengthening Parenting and Enhancing Child Resilience (2007. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/publications/allpubs/svp%2d0186