It is time for everyone to realize the health situation in Canada and be awakened by the statistics of health issues. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity (WHO, 2020). There are determinants of health that have been set out by the Government of Canada, and they are as follows:
1. Income and social status
2. Employment and working conditions
3. Education and literacy
4. Childhood experiences
5. Physical environments
6. Social supports and coping skills
7. Healthy behaviours
8. Access to health services
9. Biology and genetic endowment
10. Gender
11. Culture
12. Race / Racism
All twelve of these determinants are different dependent on where you come from. Through this course, indigenous peoples, vulnerable groups and the future for mental health has even researched and will be discussed through this paper. Canada wants to strive to have equal health opportunities for every individual regardless of where you come from or any social contract an individual falls under, but that is not the case. So how can we get there and in what ways can health, in specific, mental health be equally cared for across the country?
Looking back at everything learned throughout this course about health care and focusing on mental health, there is a lot of considerations that need to be looked at to improve the care in the future. In any given year, 1 in 5 Canadians experience a mental illness or addiction problem (CAMH, 2020). But the response to this is sometimes that those people should take a leave from work and deal with the issue, but consider this: the cost of a disability leave for a mental illness is about double the cost of a leave due to a physical illness (CAMH, 2020). The striking numbers about Mental Illness in Canada and the stigmatization that surrounds this topic is astonishing. As shown below, there are many different diagnosis regarding health in Canada, and 53% of people have more then one (CAMH, 2020).
When focusing in on vulnerable populations it is important to understand what it means to be vulnerable. According to the Oxford English Dictionary (2020) “vulnerability” is defined as “the quality or state of being exposed to the possibility of being attacked or harmed, either physically or emotionally.” Consequently, when labeling groups of people as vulnerable it can lead to exclusion and stigmatization. Canada’s health care system strives to protect everyone including those who are vulnerable, with the goal of providing universal access to medically necessary health care based on need rather than ability to pay (Clark & Preto, 2018).
An overwhelming majority of people with mental and psychosocial disabilities are living in poverty, poor physical health, and are subject to human rights violations (WHO, 2020). Although, the majority of individuals with mental health issues are from poverty or poor physical health, society needs to take a step back and look at those people who have mental health as vulnerable. They are subjected to stigma and discrimination on a daily basis, and they experience extremely high rates of physical and sexual victimization (WHO, 2020). Often times, people with mental health issues are restricted from events in the public, school, or even job opportunities. It is a constant circle of negative views towards those with mental health, where the stigmatization worsens the mental health as shown below.
One population that has been widely talked about in this course is Aboriginal peoples, who account for roughly five percent of the population (Elflein, 2020). Aboriginal People tend to experience lower levels of education and income, high rates of unemployment and incarnation and poorer health, these are just to name a few among many disparities. As.a society, there is many ways to understand and become educated on just how bad the health differences between aboriginals and the rest of the population. The statistics surrounding this group of people is alarming, aboriginal youth are about five to six times more likely to die by suicide than non-Aboriginal youth and suicide rates for Inuit youth are among the highest in the world, at 11 times the national average (CAMH, 2020).
When looking at the general health care treatment for Aboriginal People compared to no-aborginal people, statistics show that from 2014-2015, 85 percent of non-indigenous Canadians had a regular medical doctor, compared to only 43 percent of the Inuit population (Elflein, 2020). This is factual evidence that will only continue to worsen if the vulnerable populations, such as aboriginal peoples, are continually stigmatized and uncared for.
The constant need for help is rapidly growing in the mental health department. According to the WHO Mental Health Action Plan from 2013-2020, between 76%and 85%of people with severe mental disorders receive no treatment for their disorder in low-income and middle-income countries; the corresponding range for high income countries is also high: between 35%and 50%( WHO, 2020). People feel they cant get the help they need and that needs to change quickly.
Mental health needs to be valued, promoted, treated, and prevents in all persons regardless of any social construct and the persons who become affected by mental health issues need to exercise their human rights and receive the treatment necessary. The WHO Mental Health Action Plan from 2013-2020 (WHO, 2020) states that their are four main objectives in which the future holds:
1. to strengthen effective leadership and governance for mental health; 2. to provide comprehensive, integrated and responsive mental health and social care services
3. in community-based settings; 3. to implement strategies for promotion and prevention in mental health; 4. to strengthen information systems, evidence and research for mental health.
Through this course, there has been an exceptional amount of resources and information shared based on the health care system, that allowed for individuals to learn how to help, how to educate each other and how to become more educated on future plans.
Lastly, in order to summarize and undertsand how mental health diseases can effect everyone, here is a TED talk that emphasizes how society needs to talk about it and make a difference to change the stigamtizing view of mental health.
Resources
Clark, B., & Preto, N. (2018). Exploring the concept of vulnerability in health care. CMAJ, 190(11). doi: 10.1503/cmaj.180242
Elflein, J. (n.d.). Topic: Indigenous health in Canada. Retrieved from https://www.statista.com/topics/4563/indigenous-health-in-canada/#dossierSummary__chapter3
Goffman, Ervin. 1986. Stigma: notes on the management of spoiled identity. Simon & Schuster, New York.
Government of Canada. (2020, Oct 7). Social Determinants of Health and Health Inequalities.https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/health-promotion/population-health/what-determines-health.html
Mental health, poverty and development. (2012, May 11). Retrieved from https://www.who.int/mental_health/policy/development/en/
Mental health action plan 2013 - 2020. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789241506021
Mental Illness and Addiction: Facts and Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.camh.ca/en/driving-change/the-crisis-is-real/mental-health-statistics
Robinson, P., Turk, D., Jilka, S., & Cella, M. (2018). Measuring attitudes towards mental health using social media: Investigating stigma and trivialization. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 54, 51-58. doi:10.1007/s00127-018-1571-5
The Crisis is Real. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.camh.ca/en/driving-change/the-crisis-is-real
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