Mental Health News for Employers

Posted on Monday, January 30, 2012

An important message from Christine Buttkus, Outreach Coordinator (Sea to Sky), North Shore Schizophrenia Society, Christine Buttkus, Outreach Coordinator (Sea to Sky), North Shore Schizophrenia Society

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January 29, 2012

Dear Employers:

Sharing Mental Health Resources in the Workplace

As the New Year begins, we are asking that important messages about mental health, mental illness and the related risk for suicide be included in your orientation materials for employees.  More than 3,500 Canadians die by suicide every year and, according to the World Health Organization, most of these deaths can be prevented.  Suicide is the cause of almost half of all violent deaths and represents 1.4% of the global burden of disease.

This burden measures only a portion of the impact; for every suicide death, there are also emotional, social and economic impacts on friends, families and communities.  In the Pemberton area, service providers, including RCMP, receive urgent mental health calls throughout the year, but peak times occur in late fall and early spring.

PDF» We encourage you to download a brochure about Mental Health Resources for Pemberton & District. The attached document also includes various website links and phone numbers.

Mental Health Workshop Opportunities

We will be training workshop presentation teams later this week. I am now ready to receive requests for mini presentations to groups and organizations. We can customize the time frame, but generally 30 minutes would be ideal.

We have tentatively scheduled our first public presentation for February 23 at 6:30 p.m. as part of the Pemberton Library's mental health speaker series.

For Those in Need of Support

For those with an illness, a connection to Mental Health Services is important. For immediate assistance for those who are thinking of hurting themselves, or are concerned about someone who may be in distress, call the 24-hour Crisis Centre Distress Line at 1.866.661.3311 or 1.800.784.2433 (Suicide).

VCH Mental Health and Addiction Services can be reached in Pemberton at 604.698.5861. MCFD Child and Youth Mental Health can be reached at 604.894.2091 or 1.866.823.5374.

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For More Information

Christine Buttkus
Outreach Coordinator (Sea to Sky)
North Shore Schizophrenia Society
Cellular (604) 849-2252
christine@northshoreschizophrenia.org
www.northshoreschizophrenia.org

Tags: mental health, depression, suicide, health   Category: Business Resources