Thank you very much, Madam Chair and members of the Standing Committee on National Defence. It is a real privilege to be here today with my colleague, Lieutenant Colonel Suzanne Bailey, and to have the opportunity to discuss mental health in the Canadian Armed Forces.
My name is Colonel Helen Wright. I'm a family medicine physician with a background in research and occupational medicine. I am currently the director of mental health within the Canadian Armed Forces health services. My team is responsible for the professional, technical and clinical lead guidance and policy for the Canadian Forces mental health services and psychosocial services.
Today I'm pleased to have at my side, at least virtually, Lieutenant Colonel Suzanne Bailey. She is the senior Canadian Forces social worker as well as the national practice leader for social work within health services. She has also, for the past decade, led the Road to Mental Readiness, known as R2MR, mental health training program, overseeing its development, delivery and evaluation of mental health training among Canadian Armed Forces personnel.
Mental illness is experienced by one in five Canadians over their lifetime and some estimates are even higher at one in three Canadians. This extraordinary impact that mental health illnesses and injuries have on Canadians is also reflected in the Canadian Armed Forces. Our studies suggest that one in six of seven regular force members experiences a new, or perhaps ongoing, mental health issue in any given year. We know that anxiety disorders are the most commonly diagnosed, followed by depressive disorders.
Accordingly, the Canadian Armed Forces encourages members to raise concerns and seek appropriate help when needed. Efforts are ongoing to engage and educate our members to reduce all types of barriers to care, as well stigma. CAF members have access to a comprehensive, evidence-based health care system. It's grounded in family medicine but augmented by mental health and psychosocial services that are delivered by teams of people consisting of psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, mental health nurses, addiction counsellors, chaplains and many others as well as an extensive cadre of civilian mental health specialists who practise in the community who also see our Canadian Armed Forces members.
As we were just reminded, health is much more than a matter of clinical health care, particularly in a military context. Health is a very complex concept involving a broad spectrum of factors, so while excellence in health care is necessary, it is just one element in a comprehensive array of Department of National Defence efforts on wellness and health.
In the Canadian Armed Forces we're looking for a fully integrated approach for lifelong health for our members, which includes health promotion and all sorts of health care services and activities and contributions from a number of different groups in CAF, groups such as the chaplains, morale and welfare, the transition group to name just a few. It also includes engagement from the chain of command and our leaders, members' families as we were also just reminded, and of course at the centre we have the members themselves.
I've alluded to this extensive array of supports, services and health promotion. Clearly I don't have time to introduce them in these short comments, but Colonel Bailey and I look forward to being able to tell you more about some of these programs and to answer your questions on mental health in the Canadian Armed Forces.