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Articles
Welcome to the CMHA Toronto articles page. Here you will
find items ranging from personal stories to scholarly papers.
Scroll down the page to read their descriptions. We hope that
you find our offerings stimulating and inspiring.
These articles are in PDF format. You'll need the Adobe Acrobat
Reader to view / print these files.
| Title: |
Silent
Patient |
| Description: |
Hello I am the
silent patient; a patient that has decided that
there needs to be a voice. A piercing voice to
inform society that the silence has to stop. This
article is based on a true personal journey through
the Mental Health System. (12 pages)
|
| Author: |
“Sarah”,
a client of CMHA Toronto Employment Services |
| Date: |
May 2008 |
|
| Title: |
Arrividerci
Trieste: Reflections and Observations about Mental
Health Services in Italy After 30 years of Reform |
| Description: |
From March 10–15,
2008 I visited mental health services in Milan,
Brescia and Trieste.
Italy has had 30 years of reform while Canada
has had 30 years of rhetoric about reform. Despite
this, both countries have much to share with each
other as both jurisdictions try to improve their
mental health services and comparative national
studies of various aspects of our respective mental
health systems could inform reform efforts in
both countries. |
| Author: |
Steve Lurie, Executive
Director, CMHA Toronto |
| Date: |
April 2008 |
|
| Title: |
Report
on the Survey of Hospitals’ Use of Community
Treatment Orders and Case Management Services |
| Description: |
In the fall
of 2003, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
conducted a survey of all hospitals in Toronto
that have access to Community Treatment Order
(CTO) coordination and case management services.
The purpose of the survey was to obtain feedback
from mental health professionals regarding
- Their experience working with CAMH and the
Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) on
this CTO initiative.
- Experiences utilizing CTOs
- Reasons CTOs are not used
- Ongoing perceptions/beliefs about CTOs
The purpose of this report is to examine the
perceptions of clinicians who are served by the
CTO project in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, have
of CTOs and the services provided by CAMH and
CMHA. Ultimately, findings from this survey will
serve to evaluate the service, identify gaps and
direct future planning for the CTO project. 23
pages.
|
| Author: |
Centre for Addiction
and Mental Health and Canadian Mental Health Association |
| Date: |
May 2005 |
|
| Title: |
Fighting
the stigma of mental Illness |
| Description: |
Last fall, …a
biopsy confirmed malignancy and I was quickly
admitted for surgery. It was a time of much uncertainty
and anxiety, but my recovery was uneventful and
characterized by … flowers, fruit baskets,
cards, and many visits by friends and family.
….
While hospitalized, I didn't have to worry about
my job, my relationships or my home. My employer
emphasized that my health was the Number 1 priority.
My family was supportive and caring throughout,
and my home was waiting for my eventual return.
This is not the way it would have unfolded if
I had a psychotic episode, a serious depression
or an addiction to prescription painkillers…. |
| Author: |
Dr. Paul Garfinkel,
CEO, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. |
| Date: |
May 2005 |
|
| Title: |
New
Zealand Notes |
| Description: |
In February
and early March 2005 I attended the a meeting
of the International Initiative on Mental Health
Leadership (IIMHL) which included a site visit
to the Manukau District Health Board (Auckland)
and in Wellington an international meeting of
clinicians, administrators and consumer leaders
from New Zealand, Australia, England, Scotland,
the U.S. and Canada.
What follows are observations and reflections
on the mental health services and the health care
environment in New Zealand.
"Turn your face to the sun and the shadows
will fall behind you." A Maori saying. |
| Author: |
Steve Lurie, Executive
Director, CMHA Toronto |
| Date: |
February 2005 |
|
| Title: |
Comparative
Mental Health Policy: Are there lessons to be learned? |
| Description: |
This paper briefly
reviews the status of national mental health policy
in Australia, the UK, the US and New Zealand. It
then examines the evolution of mental health policy
in Ontario and provides some commentary on how the
Ontario experience is consistent with the experience
of other jurisdictions. Finally it examines whether
there are lessons to be learned that can be applied
in Canada and elsewhere. Steve presented this paper
at ICONS (International Conference on Schizophrenia),
sponsored by SCARF, the Schizophrenia Research Foundation,
in Chennai India. |
| Author: |
Steve Lurie, Executive
Director, CMHA Metro Toronto |
| Date: |
January, 2004 |
|
| Title: |
Introduction
to The McGill McConnell Papers |
| Description: |
From 1999-2001,
CMHA and the McConnell Foundation made it possible
for CMHA's executive director to attend an executive
program focusing on voluntary sector leadership
and management offered by the Faculty of Management
at McGill University. This one page paper describes
the program, and is an introduction to a selection
of Steve's papers that are offered here to stimulate
thinking on a number of topics including accountability,
organizational ethics and collaboration. |
| Author: |
Steve Lurie, Executive
Director, CMHA Metro Toronto |
| Date: |
May, 2002 |
|
| Title: |
Mandated
Collaboration: Command and Control or Emergent Process
|
| Description: |
A McGill McConnell
paper. The management and support of forensic clients
and people on community treatment orders is an area
of interest to both clinicians and policy makers.
Collaboration between hospital and community service
providers is required and in some instances, mandated.
This paper reviews some of the literature about
mergers and alliances and examines selected experiences
in the mental health field using a case study method.
The case studies examine mandated collaboration
comparing the development of the forensic MOU (memorandum
of understanding) which involved CMHA Metro Toronto
and three general hospital ACT teams with the community
treatment order collaborative project, which involves
our agency, the Centre for Addiction and Mental
Health and 11 general hospitals.
The paper offers observations on the extent to which
collaboration is an emergent process that is responsive
to its particular environment and explores power
dynamics and how trust and flexibility affect outcomes
in a positive or negative sense. 70 pages. |
| Author: |
Steve Lurie, Executive
Director, CMHA Metro Toronto |
| Date: |
June, 2002 |
|
| Title: |
Can
CMHA Audit Itself Ethically? |
| Description: |
A McGill McConnell
paper. CMHA has a mixture of internal and external
accountability requirements now. We have a mission.
We have many internal and external stakeholders.
These include: clients, staff and volunteers, Board
of Directors, Ministry of Health, United Way, colleague
agencies, and the broader public.
There are concerns, given the multiplicity of accountability
requirements, that an ethical auditing process should
add value, rather than simply take additional time
for compliance reporting.
This article describes what is in place now at CMHA
and makes proposals for a future process that has
since been adopted. 4 pages.
|
| Author: |
Steve Lurie, Executive
Director, CMHA Metro Toronto |
| Date: |
February, 2000 |
|
| Title: |
What
Does it Mean to be National? |
| Description: |
A McGill McConnell
paper. This research project identifies and describes
how various roles and structural practices allow
organizations to work toward their maximum potential.
While the report does not make specific recommendations
on the best national role and/or structure, it does
offer a process by which organizational leaders
can explore their own role/structural issues and
tensions within their organizations. Strengths and
challenges have been identified within seven organizations
in order to develop a sense of the climate and environment
found in national organizations today. The final
product of this research includes tools to help
guide organizational discussion on national roles
and structures towards positive future outcomes.
22 pages |
| Author: |
Joyce Van Deurzen,
Ray Folkins, Steve Lurie (Executive Director, CMHA
Metro Toronto) Michael McKnight, Penny Milton, Henriette
Thompson, Marianne Wilkinson. |
| Date: |
February, 2001 |
|
| Title: |
15
Minutes with Vandana Shiva: Reflections on Globalization |
| Description: |
This description
of author's meeting with Vandana Shiva includes
reflections on globalization, globalization and
the voluntary sector, and the meaning of globalization
for his work at CMHA. 15 pages. |
| Author: |
Steve Lurie, Executive
Director, CMHA Metro Toronto |
| Date: |
November, 2000 |
|
| Title: |
The
Minimum Data Set Pilot Project: Overview of the
Data |
| Description: |
89 provider organizations
from across the province participated in the minimum
data set pilot test. Organizations reported their
aggregate client data at the program level. Each
provider organization was asked to classify itself
by service category. Provider organizations included
provincial psychiatric hospitals, public hospitals
and community mental health agencies. 10 pages. |
| Author: |
Steve Lurie, Executive
Director, CMHA Metro Toronto |
| Date: |
March, 1998 |
|
| Title: |
Notes
on Homelessness, Mental Illness and Substance Abuse
|
| Description: |
Summarizes the themes
from the Ontario, Toronto and US material the writer
has reviewed, supplemented by some discussions he
has had with people who work in the field. The summary
will include what is known about the populations,
an overview of problems from a systems perspective,
and a review of what is known about promising practices
with a view to setting the stage for the development
of workable strategies which are likely to reduce
homelessness as well be supported by most stakeholders.
10 pages. |
| Author: |
Steve Lurie, Executive
Director, CMHA Metro Toronto |
| Date: |
July, 1997 |
|
| Title: |
A
Supportive Housing Plan for Toronto |
| Description: |
It is acknowledged
that Toronto has a homelessness problem and that
up to 1/3 of the homeless population have mental
health problems. Shelters are overflowing and there
are reports of psychiatric facilities discharging
consumers directly to the streets or shelters.
The literature on homelessness identifies mental
illness and poverty as risk factors for homelessness
and stresses that solutions must include access
to a range of housing forms and flexible support
services.
Starting November 1997, a group of community mental
health and housing providers met with staff from
the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, municipal
officials and representatives from Canada Mortgage
and Housing to develop a plan to meet the challenge
of developing 5000 affordable housing units as called
for by the Golden Task Force. Our plan is consistent
with the Task Force themes of shared responsibility
among the community and three levels of government.
We believe we can achieve the target for supportive
housing set by the Task Force. 3 pages. |
| Author: |
Steve Lurie, Executive
Director, CMHA Metro Toronto |
| Date: |
October, 1998 |
|
| Title: |
Marathon
Finish |
| Description: |
"What do you
do for exercise?"
That was my therapist twenty years ago. I told him
I took long walks and did yoga. He said nothing,
but I realised that he did not think much of that.
He mentioned that some of his clients had found
strenuous exercise had helped their depression,
and I went home and did some thinking.
The story of how Virginia Wilson took up running,
completed a marathon and promoted mental health
awareness with her famous T-shirt slogan. 3 pages. |
| Author: |
V.S. Wilson, CMHA
Metro Toronto Board of Directors, CMHA Toronto Workshop
Facilitator and Personal Experience Speaker |
| Date: |
Mental Health Matters,
CMHA Toronto newsletter, Winter 2002 |
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