Mouse model of schizophrenia is developed

From United Press International:

BALTIMORE, July 31 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists have genetically engineered the first mouse model of both the anatomical and behavioral defects involved in schizophrenia.

Johns Hopkins University researchers said their new mouse model is based on a genetic change relevant to the disease.

Dr. Akira Sawa, an associate professor of psychiatry and neuroscience, and his colleagues said they took advantage of the recent discovery of a major risk factor for the disease -- the DISC1 gene -- that makes a protein that helps nerve cells assume their proper positions in the brain.

The researchers generated mice that make an incomplete, shortened form of the DISC1 protein in addition to the regular type. That short form of the protein attaches to the full-length one, disrupting its normal duties.

As the mice mature, they display behaviors that parallel those observed in schizophrenic patients.

Sawa said the new mouse model will help in exploring how external factors, such as stress or viruses, might worsen symptoms.

"The animals can also be bred with other strains of genetically engineered mice to try to pinpoint additional schizophrenia genes," he said.

The study is reported online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Photograph by Rasbak.

24/7 help with mental health crisis

From the June 22nd issue of Capital Health Update:

Beginning June 24, immediate mental health crisis support will be available 24 hours a day, every day.

Hundreds of people have called the Mental Health Mobile Crisis Team each month since the integrated service opened in June 2006. The number of people seeking help from the team is higher than expected and growing.

This is what prompted the IWK Health Centre to increase its funding to the service, which will enable the team to support people 24 hours a day by telephone. Until now, telephone crisis support was available from 9 a.m. to 5 a.m. daily, leaving a four-hour gap in service. (Mobile support continues to be available in areas of Halifax, Dartmouth and Bedford from 1 p.m. to 1 a.m. daily.)

“The early morning hours can be an essential time to offer follow-up services for people who have called us the night before,” says Mary Pyche, service co-ordinator. “Operating 24/7 provides the opportunity for us to continue to support a person in crisis regardless of the time of day.”

At the heart of the team of mental health professionals and dedicated police officers who are the crisis service is the ability to support people in the moment – where and when they are experiencing a crisis. The team also provides follow-up support, which often includes connecting a person to other resources, and education.

The Mental Health Mobile Crisis Team began as part of the Healthy Minds Initiative and is a partnership of Capital Health, the IWK Health Centre, the Halifax Regional Police and the Nova Scotia Department of Health.

Crisis Support: 429-8167 or 1-800-429-8167

Involuntary Commitment

From the PBS program, Religion & Ethics Newsweekly. To view, including a video, click here.

Search for Schizophrenia's Roots Started at Home

Mark Moran writes in the July 6th issue of Psychiatric News:

A brother's concern for a sister with schizophrenia drew him into a research career whose fruits may eventually prevent many individuals from experiencing the ravages of this disease.

To read the full story about the life of E. Fuller Torrey, M.D., click here.

Photograph by Breton Littlehales.

A parent's question ...

From the July 19th issue of The Times:

How one can distinguish between the slightly aberrant behaviour of many adolescents and the first signs of schizophrenia or allied conditions?

For the full story, click here.

Thanks go to John Devlin for bringing this article to my attention.

Photograph courtesy of The Times.

Parade of Sails - Halifax, Nova Scotia

The tall ship Prince William parades in front of the Nova Scotia Hospital today. Click the photographs to make them larger.

Pride of Baltimore II

I'm fairly certain that this is the Gorch Fock II.

All photographs by Steve A.

Researchers may have schizophrenia breakthrough

From CTV.ca (May 3, 2007):

A team of Canadian and Scottish scientists has pinpointed one of the genes that causes schizophrenia -- a breakthrough that sheds new light on how the disease can develop.

The work is to be published Thursday [May 3rd] in the journal Neuron [to view the abstract, click here].

It demonstrates for the first time that schizophrenia can be caused by a malfunctioning gene, suggesting schizophrenia is linked to depression and bipolar disorder and may have the same underlying cause.

The discovery may someday help doctors identify which patients will respond to different types of treatments.

Click on the arrow to start the video.

Many thanks to Charlie G. for help with this posting.

the Self-Help Connection

From the Health Promotion Clearinghouse website:

Profile of the Month

July's Profile is the Self-Help Connection - It is a non-profit registered organization established in 1987 to assist Nova Scotians to take control of their health by increasing their knowledge, skills, and resources for individual and collective action. The Self-Help Connection has received national recognition as a 'Mental Health Best Practice Program' from the Federal, Provincial, and Territorial Advisory Network on Mental Health for self-help and consumer initiatives.

The Consumer Initiative Centre is a program of the Self-Help Connection launched in 2002 and is funded by the Nova Scotia Department of Health and Department of Community Services.

To visit the Self-Help Connection Clearinghouse Association's website, click here.

Note:
The purpose of the Consumer Initiative Centre is to increase the capacity of persons living with, through, and beyond mental illness to help themselves and each other move forward.

It is a provincial program that provides peer support, computer training, entrepreneurship / employability enhancement, and assistance with personal development.

Phone 404-7800 or 1-866-765-6639 (toll-free) for more information.

Schizophrenia: Looking at the Future

A guide about staying well and getting the most out of life, for a brighter tomorrow.

To view the guide, click here (downloads a PDF).

Photo by Infrogmation.

Homelessness 'chronic' in Canada: study

From CBC.ca, June 26, 2007:

Canada's homeless population is somewhere between 200,000 and 300,000 people, while another 1.7 million residents struggle with "housing affordability issues," says an analysis of the latest research on shelter.

In a report released Tuesday from the Calgary-based Sheldon Chumir Foundation for Ethics in Leadership, journalist and author Gordon Laird argues homelessness is now chronic and is quickly becoming one of the country's defining social issues. He makes a case for a national housing strategy and a more robust income security program.

Citing statistics from a wide range of organizations, Laird says poverty is the leading cause of homelessness in Canada, not substance abuse or mental illness. "Roughly half of all Canadians live in fear of poverty, and 49 per cent polled believe they might be poverty stricken if they missed one or two paycheques," he writes.

Laird is a media fellow with the foundation, which works to influence ethical actions in politics, business, government and the community.

In his report, Laird writes that street counts of homeless people have increased dramatically — "Calgary's homeless population grew 740 per cent between 1994 and 2006."

He cites government numbers showing a cost of up to $6 billion a year to service a "core" homeless population of 150,000. That cost includes health care, criminal justice, social services and emergency shelter costs.

"The high cost of homelessness in Canada results from the role of homelessness as a proven multiplier of societal ills: malnutrition, unemployment, addiction, mental illness, family strife and lack of income security are all intensified when an individual or household becomes homeless," he writes.

The report criticizes Canada for trying to contain the growth of homelessness with temporary measures such as shelters and other crisis-based services. It cites studies that show the cost of emergency shelters is much greater than the cost of creating affordable housing and implementing rent supplements.

Laird says the former national affordable housing strategy, discontinued in 1993, created 650,000 units providing housing for more than two million Canadians. While new investments in affordable housing were made in 2005, there is no national strategy and so no guarantee the money will be well-spent, he says.

"And without a national strategy on housing and homelessness, there is much risk for repeating past mistakes and spending blindly on short-term fixes and emergency responses," writes Laird.

To view Gordon Laird's report, entitled SHELTER, click here (downloads a PDF).

Also see The True Cost of Homelessness, Gordon Laird's June 26th article in the Toronto Star.

Genetic polymorphism of the adenosine A2A receptor is associated with habitual caffeine consumption

Sound interesting? Grab a second cup of coffee and click here to find out more.

Photograph by Julius Schorzman.

Falling through the Cracks --

-- Virginia Tech and the Restructuring of College Mental Health Services

An article from the July 12th issue of The New England Journal of Medicine. Click here to view (downloads a PDF).

Tall Ships Nova Scotia Festival 2007, July 12-25

For complete information on this event, click here.

Bounty II

From Wikipedia:

MGM commissioned a replica of Bounty, named Bounty II, for their 1962 film Mutiny on the Bounty. This vessel was built to the original plans and in the traditional manner in a shipyard in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. However, all the dimensions were increased by approximately one third to accommodate the large 70 mm cameras used. MGM kept this vessel in service. When Ted Turner bought MGM he used this vessel for entertaining. Eventually MGM donated the vessel to a charity.

Although expensive maintenance caused the vessel to lose her United States Coast Guard license for a time, Tall Ship Bounty was restored, initially at the Boothbay Harbor Shipyard in 2002, with restoration of the vessel's bottom planking. Moored in its winter home in St. Petersburg, Florida, it again became available for charter, excursions, sail-training, and movies (most recently in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End). In April 2006, the Bounty again arrived in Boothbay Harbor for further renovation, a refurbishing of the ship's front end, and topside decking. Following this renovation, the Bounty was scheduled to repeat the famous voyage of the original Bounty.

Psychoeducation in schizophrenia

The authors of a recent paper published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry conclude that "the integration of psychoeducation into standard therapy for schizophrenia should become obligatory."

To read the abstract of this paper, click here.

Sympathy Through Technology

Virtual Reality Experience Mimics Schizophrenia to Teach Health Professionals About Their Patients

The virtual reality simulator Mindstorm lets viewers experience the world through the mind of an individual living with untreated schizophrenia.

For the full story from ABC News, click here.

Drug coverage policies a prescription for disaster

From the July 4th edition of the Halifax Chronicle Herald:

WHO WRITES your prescriptions?

By Charles Cirtwill

I always thought it was my doctor who diagnosed my problem, decided on the appropriate drug and wrote a prescription. Boy, was I wrong.

Apparently, there are a great many people telling our doctors what they can and cannot prescribe and when. The latest group to be added to the mix is the Common Drug Review. The CDR is an inter-provincial panel that reviews drugs for purchase and use in situations where the provinces pay for drugs – i.e., for the most vulnerable among us, the elderly, those in hospital, and those unable to afford private drug plans of their own.

The CDR was intended to streamline the process of approval of drugs for purchase by governments in Canada by creating a single window for review. Unfortunately, once Health Canada certifies a drug as safe for use, it is then reviewed not only by the CDR but by the old provincial approval systems (they never went away), and in many cases by further approval committees at the health district and hospital levels, and by independent agencies that oversee drug plans for veterans, public servants and the military (among others).

The result is a great deal of duplication and a continued lack of consistent drug coverage. Veterans, politicians and public servants, for instance, have quite broad formularies (a list of drugs the specific drug plan will pay for) compared to the rest of us. Similarly, the province of Quebec will cover many drugs not available under provincial plans elsewhere in Canada.

Of the 53 drugs that were reviewed by the CDR between 2003 and 2006, 53 per cent were rejected. Quebec, which does not participate in the CDR, rejected only 38 per cent. That translates into 11 new drugs paid for by the government of Quebec that are not paid for elsewhere in Canada because of the efforts of the CDR.

Now, remember, you can pay for ALL of these drugs privately if you wish because all of them have been approved for use by Health Canada.

Yes, that means they have gone through clinical trials and have been approved as safe for human consumption and as having positive and demonstrable effects in the treatment of specific diseases. But in 53 per cent of the cases, public servants decided that the most vulnerable among us should not have access to these drugs. That decision was made because the cost of those drugs to the provincial treasury outweighed the benefit they delivered to affected patients.

Or, at least, we think that was the reason. You see, you and I have no right to know what evidence was considered, what questions were asked, what experts were consulted, or what trade-offs were made when these decisions were reached. That lack of accountability arises because, while it provides this service for the federal and provincial governments, and our tax dollars pay for it, the CDR is technically a private, not-for-profit entity and does not report to you, or to anyone, and is not covered by freedom of information laws.

Let’s be clear. These are hard decisions, decisions that have to be made. But they must be based on the best available evidence and the most accurate definition of total system cost available. They must be made promptly and in a dependable, transparent manner. They cannot be made behind closed doors or in a manner that results in their veracity being in any way in doubt. We must demonstrably account not only for the short-term savings by refusing certain drugs, but the long-term potential costs of other treatments that will be necessary in the absence of those drugs.

Consider private drug plans. Private plans make use of generic replacement stipulations, for example, that allow them to reduce costs and cover more services – a good thing. But normally, if your doctor makes the case that only the brand name medication will work for you, then they allow for that. Simply put, it is better for the insurance company to pay a higher price now rather than risk that you will get sicker and need more – and more expensive – care later on.

This is something the CDR should be considering next time the news is full of stories about bed shortages and staffing challenges: Health is an interconnected system and the cash all comes from one source. Saving on drugs today generally means more spending on doctors, nurses and hospitals tomorrow.

Charles Cirtwill is the acting president of the Atlantic Institute for Market Studies, a non-partisan public policy think tank based in Halifax.

Also see: Pharmacist from Dal part of intensive drug study.

Listen to the Wind

A Journey in Schizophrenia

A portion of the proceeds from sales of this book are donated to the Schizophrenia Scoiety of Nova Scotia. To order Listen to the Wind, please click here.

From the Breton Books website:

A rare and fascinating book, this is Mary Ellen Tramble’s haunting, tender autobiography of her life with schizophrenia. With the power and detail of a novel, and laced with her small, strong poems, it is, as well, an extraordinary and moving work of art. “Listen to the Wind” displays the tense and terrifying sentences, the sudden self-mocking and degradation, the grand insights that take Tramble (and us) high on the ferris wheel of emotions—and then toss us overboard for the plunge [a person living with schizophrenia] knows only too well. In “Listen to the Wind,” Mary Ellen Tramble has made of her struggle a lasting piece of extraordinary writing. We can only be grateful for her determination to record, and her courage and generosity to share. “A monument to the tenacity of the human spirit in its struggle to face mysterious terrors, maintain hope and avoid despair.” — Sheldon Currie, author of “The Glace Bay Miners’ Museum” "For all of the pain and fear in ‘Listen to the Wind,’ there is also great love and beauty.” — Patrick F. Walsh, editor and author of “The History of Antigonish”

176pages . $14.95 . ISBN 1-895415-56-X . Breton Books

Invega introduced into the United Kingdom

Visit New Treatment for Schizophrenia Licensed in the UK.

Can you tell the difference between the molecular structures of

paliperidone [Invega(TM)]

and


risperidone?

For more information on paliperidone, click here.

Bazelon Center Offers Educational Institutions a Model Policy for Addressing Student Mental Health Issues

Washington DC, May 16, 2007--The Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law today released a model policy to help colleges and universities develop a non-discriminatory, non-punitive approach to students in crisis because of mental health problems. The document offers a response to serious mental health problems among college and university students and schools' lack of consensus on what to do when such students are in crisis.

Supporting Students: A Model Policy for Colleges and Universities was developed by Bazelon Center attorneys after consultation with mental health experts, higher education administrators, counselors and students. It is a collection of best practices that all colleges and universities can adopt.

"We want to send a clear message to students that it is safe to seek mental health services," said Bazelon Executive Director Robert Bernstein.

In the 2006 National College Health Assessment, 43.8% of the 94,806 students surveyed reported they "felt so depressed it was difficult to function" during the past year, and 9.3% that they had "seriously considered suicide" during the year. Students also named depression as one of the top ten impediments to academic performance.

Most campuses today have counseling services that are confidential and free of charge. However, when students are in crisis, particularly if they manifest self-injurious thoughts or behavior, colleges and universities often are unsure of how to address these issues. Some are concerned about potential harm and legal liability.

"Too often colleges and universities respond to students with mental illnesses in punitive ways, requiring them to leave or evicting them from school-sponsored housing," says Bazelon Center senior staff attorney Karen Bower. "Such punitive measures discourage students from seeking help and isolate them from social and professional supports at a time of crisis, increasing the risk of harm."

"While this policy is not an attempt to address the full range of activities and services that educational institutions should undertake to promote student mental health," says Bower, "it offers a fair and humane approach to dealing with students who are in crisis."

The Bazelon Center policy offers guiding principles for how to deal fairly and non-punitively with students in crisis and how to support those whose mental health problems may be interfering with their academic, extracurricular or social lives. It also lists potential approaches to various situations and examples of accommodations that schools can make to enable such students to continue their education successfully.

"We truly believe that colleges and universities can do more to promote personal and academic success for all students," said Bower.

The Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law is the leading national legal-advocacy organization representing adults and children with mental disabilities.

Pictured is Dana Bazelon, Student, Georgetown University Law Center.

Drugs in Clinical Trials for Schizophrenia

To view the list, click here (downloads a PDF).

List created and updated by Hugo Geerts, In Silico Biosciences

The list was last updated on January 15th, 2007.


For a story relating to possible generic production of olanzapine in Canada, click here.

Molecular structure of olanzapine

Mental health courts gain popularity across Canada

Crown Attorney Ruth Peters Wakeham and Newfoundland Provincial Court judge David Orr in a Mental Health Court in St. John’s.

Photo by Joe Gibbons

Donalee Moulton writes in the June 1st, 2007, edition of The Lawyers Weekly:

[...]

In Nova Scotia, no formal investigation into the issue is underway, but the establishment of a mental health court is clearly being bandied about. The Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society devoted the most recent issue of its monthly newsletter to the topic. In that issue, Frank Hoskins, chief Crown attorney for the Halifax Region and Special Prosecutions, noted that, “Currently, Nova Scotia has an Adult Diversion Program, which is a post-charge, pre-trial option to the criminal justice system. A pre-charge option is worthy of consideration as it would create another viable alternative to deal with minor offences.

“In cases where it’s more appropriate,” he added, “this would enable specifically trained police officers to divert an accused away from the criminal justice system. More serious offences could be directed to the mental health court where judges and lawyers qualified or trained to deal with cases of this nature (and with ready access to the appropriate health professionals, which could include psychologists, psychiatrists and case workers) could develop and implement an appropriate treatment plan.”

[...]

... “The custodial response to people with mental health problems is an historic one,” said Archie Kaiser, a professor in the Faculty of Law and Department of Psychiatry at Dalhousie University.

“To incarcerate people merely because we have failed to develop appropriate supports has always been shameful,” he added. “In 2007, this is totally unacceptable.”

Antistigma Program Shows Power of Taking Control

Actress Mariel Hemingway (left) presents a Voice Award in August 2006 to Stamp Out Stigma founder Carmen Lee for her efforts to combat the stigma surrounding mental illness.

Photo credit: Larry Merkle

Eve Bender writes about the Stamp Out Stigma (SOS) program in the June 1st edition of Psychiatric News:

[...}

The program has also helped panelist Ina Pottorff, 47, who lives in Foster City, Calif., to understand her experiences with mental illness over the years by relaying her story to others.

Pottorff described herself as a moody teenager who was misdiagnosed with depression as an adult.

When she was finally diagnosed with bipolar disorder and treated with a combination of medicines, she began to become more stable.

Throughout her life, Pottorff has been no stranger to stigma. For instance, during one of her first encounters with psychiatric emergency services at a county hospital in California, an intake nurse asked her about her educational level. Pottorff truthfully replied that she had a master's degree in criminology, and when asked about work, she told the nurse that she'd worked for the National Park Service and had been stationed at the White House.

The nurse turned around and scribbled on her chart, speaking aloud as she did, according to Pottorff.

"Thinks she was a tour guide at the White House. Is delusional," the nurse said, and took steps to have the baffled patient committed to the hospital involuntarily.

Said Pottorff, "I protested and told the nurse that I was telling the truth—that I'd show them my plaques and awards at home," but the nurse wouldn't hear of it.

These days she relays this story to audiences and usually gets a chuckle. But she also gets much more from her audiences.

"For years I thought I was the only one who was sick, who felt isolated, who couldn't get along with other people, and who could barely function," she told Psychiatric News. "Through SOS, I have learned that I am not alone."

Surprising Number of People Show Signs of Psychosis

Joan Arehart-Treichel writes in the June 1st edition of Psychiatric News:

Researchers have long known that substantial proportions of nonclinical populations have sub-threshold manifestations of depression and phobia. It is striking to find that the same is true for psychotic experiences.

For more information, click here.

Involuntary Psychiatric Treatment Act to come into effect

What does it mean for Capital Health?

From the June 15th issue of Capital Health Update:

Beginning July 3, it may be easier for people who need it to receive mental health treatment. It may also be easier to impose that treatment on people whose illness lessens their decision-making ability.

Stephen Ayer, executive director, Schizophrenia Society of Nova Scotia, says the new Involuntary Psychiatric Treatment Act tries to balance patients’ rights with ensuring people receive the treatment they need. It replaces a section of the Hospital’s Act that predates Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Among the most notable changes from the Hospital’s Act, the Involuntary Psychiatric Treatment Act broadens criteria for admitting people without their consent, while introducing independent patient rights advisors. It also introduces legally binding treatment plans while encouraging community living and access to mental health services.

For Capital Health, the Act could mean greater demand for mental health inpatient acute care and more visits to emergency rooms. Debbie Phillips, bed manager, Mental Health Program, notes, however, that “over the past several months we’ve made changes to processes in the emergency services to improve flow from emergency to inpatient care. This puts us in a better position for any increased demand.”

That’s not to say there won’t be any bumps when the new Act comes into effect. “With the introduction of shorter timelines for assessments and community treatment options that many psychiatrists and staff haven’t yet worked with, there are bound to be challenges,” says Scott Theriault, clinical director. “We hope that through education and other work we’re doing, we’ll minimize these.”

Insight - how is it related to mental disorder?

Professor Anthony David talks about the associations between insight and mental disorders, particularly schizophrenia.

Click here to visit the page and download the audio.

Professor David is co-editor, with Dr. Xavier Amador, of Insight and Psychosis, published in 2004.

Schizophrenia and recovery

From Schizophrenia Bulletin, vol. 31, no. 3, pp. 723–734, 2005.

Click here to read the article (PDF).

No schizoaffective disorder?

An abstract from the July 2007 issue of Current Opinion in Psychiatry:

Schizoaffective disorder merges schizophrenia and bipolar disorders as one disease - there is no schizoaffective disorder.

Lake CR, Hurwitz N.

Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Kansas School of Medicine, Kansas City, Kansas, and Veterans Administration Medical Center, Albuquerque, NM, USA.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Schizoaffective disorder was named as a compromise diagnosis in 1933, and remains popular as judged by its place in the International Classification of Diseases and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, its frequent use in clinical practice, and its extensive discussion in the literature. Some, however, have questioned the validity of schizoaffective disorder as separate from psychotic mood disorder. We examined the literature to assess the rationale for the continuation of schizoaffective disorder as a legitimate diagnostic category.

RECENT FINDINGS: The diagnosis of schizoaffective disorder depends on the disease specificity of the diagnostic criteria for schizophrenia; however, the psychotic symptoms for schizophrenia, traditionally held as specific, can be accounted for by psychotic bipolar. Further, the interrater reliability for diagnosing schizoaffective disorder is very low. A recent and expanding body of comparative evidence from a wide range of clinical and basic science studies, especially genetic, reveals multiple similarities between schizoaffective disorder, schizophrenia and psychotic bipolar.

SUMMARY: Schizoaffective disorder unifies schizophrenia and bipolar, blurring the zones of rarity between them and suggesting that schizoaffective disorder is not a separate, 'bona-fide' disease. Patients diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder likely suffer from a psychotic mood disorder. The diagnosis of schizoaffective disorder, which can result in substandard treatment, should be eliminated from the diagnostic nomenclature.

US mental healthcare system gets a "D" grade

Grades Reflect Choices Between Recovery, Early Death

Connecticut and Ohio lead by receiving grades of B.

Illinois, Iowa, and six other states flunk.

Per capital mental health spending ranges from $414.08 in the District of Columbia to $28.80 in New Mexico.

For more information, click here.

A message from Senator Wilbert Keon

11 June 2007

Dear friends,

Just over one year ago, the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology released its final report on mental health, mental illness and addictions, Out of the Shadows at Last.

One of the key recommendations in that report was to create a national mental health commission to help ensure that mental health issues were never again driven back into the shadows.

As you may already know, in its March 2007 budget the Government of Canada provided funding for the creation of the Mental Health Commission of Canada, as recommended in our report. The Government also named the former Chair of our Committee, the Honourable Michael Kirby, as the first Chair of the Commission.

I am writing you today to tell you about the launch of the temporary website of the Mental Health Commission of Canada. The website will provide information about the Commission as it begins its activities.

As one of its first tasks, the Commission must create a Board of Directors. Members of the Board will be responsible for the work of the Commission. As recommended in our report, around two thirds of the Directors will be selected from outside of government.

From today, June 11, until July 15, 2007, the Commission is accepting applications from anyone who is interested in serving as one of the eleven non-governmental members of its Board.

I invite you to click on the link below to visit the Commission’s website to find out how to apply.

www.mentalhealthcommission.ca

I would also like to ask you to share the link to the Commission’s website widely, so that as many people as possible can become involved in the work of the Commission. In particular, if you are able to place a link to the Commission’s website on your own webpage, or on that of your organization, it would be of great assistance.

On behalf of the Chair of our Committee, Senator Art Eggleton, and all the members of the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology, I hope you join me in wishing the Mental Health Commission of Canada every success in its important mission to help improve the lives of the many thousands of Canadians living with a mental illness.

Best regards,

Senator Wilbert Keon

Deputy Chair
Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology

Warm and welcoming - Community Mental Health Bayers Road

From the Capital Health Website:

Gary Seymour and Wendy Miller both work at the reception desk at Community Mental Health Services, Bayers Road. Since the office’s opening on May 8, they’ve heard a lot of positive reviews about the bright and welcoming space, including “Wow. I feel like I’m at a spa.” And “This is really different.”

The warm, inviting and comfortable space was no accident. “A group of staff members took the lead on choosing colours and artwork for the walls and have done a tremendous job,” says Evelyn Pollard, service co-ordinator. “We still have work to do to make the space what we know it can be, but we are very happy with the response from clients.”

Community Mental Health Services, Bayers Road, will host an official open house in June, but in the meantime, please drop by to see the new location: Suite 109, Bayers Road Centre (entrance door between Lawtons and Fabricville).

To view photos of the new space, please click here.

Less talk, more action

From the June 1st edition of the Halifax Chronicle Herald:

My heart goes out to the families of Glen Race and his alleged victims. I echo the call for more treatment facilities and options for persons with mental illness.

Twenty years ago, my husband, John Legge, died by drowning himself at Point Pleasant Park while an inpatient at Camp Hill Hospital (Abbie Lane Building). A few months earlier, I had taken him to the then VG Hospital for behaving in a strange and uncharacteristic manner. The doctors in the emergency department told us he was depressed and could become suicidal, but they could not keep him against his will as he was not an "imminent" danger to himself or others.

Less than half an hour after leaving the hospital, he stabbed a family friend and was shot by a Halifax police constable who was called to the scene. After a stay at the East Coast forensic facility, he was transferred to the Abbie Lane for "treatment" and remained there until his ill-fated walk to the park on May 4, 1987.

In her report following the inquiry into John’s death, Judge Sandra Oxner stated that as a society, we have an obligation to offer viable treatment for persons with mental illness before they deteriorate to the point where they come in conflict with the law. It saddens me that 20 years later, we are still "discussing" the issue. I call on the government to put its money where its mouth is and adequately fund mental health treatment programs now, before its too late for yet another family.

Donna MacEachern, Halifax

The molecular wake-up call

Alison Abbott writes in the May 24, 2007 issue of Nature:

It is 50 years since Arvid Carlsson showed dopamine to be a neurotransmitter.

Catatonic rabbits were revived by dopamine in a 1957 experiment led by Arvid Carlsson (photographs, above). In the background is an image of Arvid Carlsson's 1957 publication in the prestigious journal Nature.

Rabbit photographs by Tor Magnusson

To read about the dopamine hypothesis of schizophrenia, click here.

The Brain That Changes Itself: Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science

From Schizophrenia Daily News Blog, May 29, 2007:

There is a good review in the New York Times of the new book called "The Brain That Changes Itself: Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science" written by the Canadian psychiatrist Norman Doidge (who does work at Columbia University in NY). While this book is not specifically about schizophrenia - it provides hopeful stories and background information on the science of brain regeneration (called neuroplasticity) which provides hope for individuals and families that [live with] schizophrenia.

The Nova Scotia Early Psychosis Program is moving

The following is taken, verbatim, from a bulletin board posting found on May 31st, 2007, in the Purdy Building:

The Nova Scotia Early Psychosis Program is moving ......
(From The Nova Scotia Hospital site)

You have probably heard we are moving! Yes, it's true! Our offices are being relocated to:

The Abbie J. Lane Memorial Building
5909 Veterans' Memorial Lane
Halifax, Nova Scotia
B3H 2E2

There is no definite date yet.
(we expect it will likely occur by September 2007)
When more details are available we will pass them on to you.

We will make every effort to ensure your care is not interrupted, and we will continue to work hard to make sure convenient appointments are made available to you.

If you have any questions, please ask your clinician or call 464-5997

THE VILLAGE

By Jon David Welland

It is said that it takes a village to raise a child; it also takes a village to care for the ill and the disabled. The social footprint of any disability includes not only family and friends but also the professionals of all stripes who contribute to their care. Mental illness is a disability, in this and many other important ways. This social footprint causes a shift in the family dynamic of those who are affected. It is moving us away from the “nuclear family” whose family unit consists of a husband, wife and their children. When children reach a certain age they are expected to leave home in hopes of creating another similar unit on their own. This model had its start in the nineteen fifties, which had a high standard of living and a prosperous economy. During the depression however, people lived in “extended families”, where two or three generations lived under the same roof and the neighbours would often share in many of their duties.

The community has a powerful role in the treatment and recovery of anyone suffering from a mental illness, and they will never become well in a community that does accept and tolerate them. They cannot remain outcasts from the village; they are your friends, your family. You see them every day on the bus, in the malls and on the street, and you wouldn’t know most of them were mentally from looking at them. They used to be hidden away in hospitals, never to see the light of day, but things have changed.

Institutions first began closing their doors out of economic necessity; because housing people in hospitals was very expensive, but there were very few supports in place in the community for these individuals, causing some serious social problems. “Psychiatric Ghettos” sprung up around the hospitals, filled with patients from all over the district, who had been tossed out and who were forced to fend for themselves.

Supports were eventually created, like free clinics, drug plans and affordable housing. This was also out of economic necessity, since the cost of these services was still much less than the cost of warehousing people in institutions.

Hospitalization became even more unnecessary when effective medications were developed to treat the symptoms of mental illness with fewer side effects and less chance of a relapse. Their struggle is now to find acceptance and a place in the community. They now have a chance to contribute to the society that supports them. They have a chance to lead normal lives.

However, there is still a great deal of stigma associated with mental illness. Housing programs have been struggling against the attitude of “not in our backyard”. People accept the need for housing, but don’t want it in their neighbourhood. There have been protests, petitions and demonstrations; even city aldermen have gotten into the act. The best way to fight this stigma is through public education about the facts of mental illness.

We refuse to be driven out of our homes.

Photograph by Brendel.