Celebrate the 63rd Annual Mental Health Week with us at St. Joe's
Thank you to all of our staff, physicians and volunteers throughout St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton for their important work in supporting people with mental illness on their journey of recovery. Every intervention, every supportive action, every kind word and every effort to advocate for people with the lived experience of mental illness is important.
While approximately 1 in 5 Canadians experience serious mental illness, and approximately 1 in 7 Canadians experience addiction/substance use issues each year, recovery and the potential to lead a full and meaningful life has never been more possible than it is now.
While progress in care is consistently being made, stigma remains a significant challenged faced by those experiencing mental illness and addiction. At St. Joe’s, we aim to enhance the care and patient experience by creating an environment free of stigma and discrimination against individuals with mental illness and addiction.
What can you do to help:
- Treat everyone as you would like to be treated – with respect and dignity always.
- Embrace everyone as a unique human being by getting beyond the label of a diagnosis.
- To truly understand mental illness and/or substance abuse, ask someone who is living with mental illness and/or addiction
- Choose your words carefully. Refer to individuals by their name, not their diagnosis or addiction, and use person first language (e.g. a person with Schizophrenia vs. a Schizophrenic).
- See the strengths and skills people have to offer rather than their weaknesses or deficits. Anyone can develop a mental illness and/or addiction, it takes great courage and resilience to recover – we can all learn from people in recovery.
- Be a champion for change. Challenge the myths of mental illness in your workplace, community and home. Focus on the positive as mental illness and addiction are just one part of who a person is.
Help us achieve our goal to enhance the care and work experience at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton by creating an environment that is FREE of STIGMA and DISCRIMINATION.