Good afternoon, Mr. Chair and committee members. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today.
My name is Jennifer Vornbrock, and I'm the vice-president of knowledge and innovation with the Mental Health Commission of Canada. I'd like to speak with you about the work the commission has accomplished in the last seven years and about our desire to move forward with a mental health action plan to improve mental health for all Canadians.
The Mental Health Commission was created in 2007, with the support of all parties in the House of Commons. Here I would be remiss not to acknowledge the support of the late Jim Flaherty. He was a champion for mental health and encouraged our work, both publicly and privately, over a number of years.
Today I am asking to continue our work together to help all Canadians from coast to coast to coast. The commission has completed all of its goals in its current mandate three years ahead of time and on budget. In seven short years, we have worked with national stakeholders across the country to create a national mental health strategy for Canada. We have trained over 110,000 Canadians to deliver mental health first aid in 2,640 communities across this country. We have launched the world's first national standard for psychological health and safety in the workplace. We have led a national youth anti-stigma campaign, evaluating anti-stigma programs in over 50 schools, and are currently working with 20 schools to implement the most effective programs. We have created an internationally recognized knowledge exchange centre to help mental health professionals share research and best practices across Canada and around the world. This summer, we started conversations in the community on suicide in collaboration with members of Parliament from all political parties. We continue to work closely with the Government of Canada to develop a federal framework on suicide prevention. Finally, the commission oversaw a major five city homelessness research project, delivering results that showed that for every $10 spent on housing first, $20 was saved.
Throughout our work, the commission has leveraged the government's investment, dollar for dollar, with over 350 partnerships that provide funding, resources, and expertise in kind. I sincerely hope there will come a day when the Mental Health Commission is out of business, but today there is still much more work to be done.
The commission's actions to date have drawn international acclaim for made-in-Canada best practice. The mental health strategy for Canada is considered one of the best in the world. We now have a road map that was created by Canadians. A renewed mandate will allow us to put those plans into action, working with the provinces and territories, stakeholders across the country, and people living with mental illness, to implement a mental health action plan with concrete goals and measurable outcomes.
Our original mandate allowed us to move the needle on workplace mental health stigma and homelessness. This new mandate will allow us to confront even more mental health issues that Canadians are seeking solutions to, such as suicide, PTSD, and support for seniors, children, youth, aboriginal, and new Canadians.
I am pleased to say that consultations on the mental health action plan are already under way. We have begun this work quickly and effectively due to the strong relationships we have built over the last seven years. With the provinces and territories, the commission has become a coordinating agent that can gather input and build consensus across all levels of government. We have also collaborated extensively with the Canadian mental health community because we know how critical it is that mental health issues are not addressed in a manner that includes silos.
To this end, I am pleased to say that Dave Gallson, co-chair of the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health, known as CAMIMH, an organization that represents 18 national mental health care organizations, has joined me here today in support.
The commission is already a hub of research and development, and our organization is a natural investment point to fund mental health innovation. Working with community stakeholders, we can address critical issues in mental health and encourage collaborative efforts between mental health stakeholders and government research bodies.
The Mental Health Commission has proven that it can deliver results faster and for less money. We have budgeted responsibly, and we can continue our current funding until 2017. It is in the next federal budget that we are seeking a strong signal to our stakeholders across Canada that our work would be able to continue until 2025.
Mental health reaches virtually into every Canadian household in this country. In any given year, one in five Canadians will experience a mental health problem, with a cost to the economy of more than $50 billion. Without action, these challenges will only intensify.
However, we believe that by working together and investing in a concrete action plan, we have the opportunity to improve the lives of Canadians living with mental illness and to position Canada as a global leader on mental health innovation.
Thank you. Merci.