Human Resources committee  In thinking about strategies, it makes sense to think across a whole variety of levels. I think some of the strategies may be things that are already in place. For example, in Ontario and in other parts of Canada and also internationally, there is the early development instrument.

Human Resources committee  I think that having it as part of the curriculum at school makes sense. If you're in high school, in grade nine you get this, or you get it in grade 10 or grade eight or something, and it's talked about in the same way as history, health education, or that sort of thing. My personal experience is that I had a patient who went to something in high school where they talked about it and then he went to his guidance counsellor and said he thought he had a mental health problem, so that was a way for him to seek help.

Human Resources committee  I think it's multi-dimensional. I think that access to resources is one part of it. I think that evidence of good interventions or things that can be helpful is.... We have a good body of evidence but we need more. I would echo Dr. Fitzgerald's idea about the ability to increase research to find out what really works in that population.

Human Resources committee  I would say that it's of national interest for people to understand what is normal growth and development, and what are the early signs that we might be concerned about for which you should look for some extra evaluation or help. I think that's an important national stance to take.

Human Resources committee  Okay.

Human Resources committee  I know the Ontario scene better than anything else. Even in Ontario, it is complicated because we have these two different ministries that are involved. I guess my first thing might be to say, get all the ducks in a row provincially to begin with, to make it as uncomplicated as you can.

Human Resources committee  What we know is that children who are born to teen parents have more mental health difficulties than children who are born to older, non-teen parents. It's important to try to tease out the reasons for that. Being a teen parent, by itself, may not be the reason or the cause of it.

Human Resources committee  I think that having community supports for women who become moms when they are teens is important, and that can be a variety of things. I know that there are certain places in Hamilton where women can live throughout their pregnancy or early after birth that have some educational opportunities associated with them, so they can continue to do some study if they want to.

Human Resources committee  That's a great question and a really complicated question.

Human Resources committee  I can only comment on our specialized services in Hamilton. We do have a waiting list for people who are coming for consultation and people who are coming for assessment and treatment in the children's mental health sector. We try to prioritize based on a number of things that have to do with risk or presentation to the emergency room, so that the people who are the most acute don't wait the longest.

Human Resources committee  The average wait time for a child psychiatric consultation is probably under three months, again with prioritization. That's for consultation. Coming for assessment and treatment is longer than that. I would probably say it's six months or more, again trying to prioritize to make sure that the ones most in need get in the most quickly.

Human Resources committee  For sure.

Human Resources committee  I think there's a whole range of possibilities. On one end, in many communities, at least in Hamilton, there are often community-based programs where parents can go to get some help with managing challenging children or children who push the limits. I think making sure that families know about these often free programs to help increase their level of knowledge and skills is on one end of it.

Human Resources committee  That's a great question with a complicated answer. Some of what can be helpful in terms of understanding this issue is one of the suggestions I made, which is really more general education about what the range of normal is and what concerning sorts of behaviour or early signs of mental illness are.

Human Resources committee  Thanks very much. Again, thanks for the opportunity to present today. I am going to talk about the relationships between child and youth mental health and poverty, but I want to begin by giving a brief overview of what we know about child and youth mental health difficulties.