Health committee  That is a very good point. Many of our folks with significant substance use disorders rely very heavily on community support, on their sponsors, on 12-step meetings and other peer support meetings. There is something to be said about physical presence in the environment. That, of

Health committee  Thank you very much.

Health committee  Absolutely.

Health committee  In terms of the first part of your question on whether it has been helpful to people within certain organizations or nationally, I do think that it has been helpful. I think it has been very helpful, just by simply looking at the number of people who have accessed this service. I

Health committee  I think there are ways, and I think some people are working on those specific projections. Again, as this pandemic has continued, we know the rates of depression have increased further, and the rates of anxiety have increased further. It's one thing to be able to deal with a stre

Health committee  Yes, absolutely.

Health committee  That's a good question, but it's very difficult to tease out. In truth, I haven't looked at the data on rates that could distinguish between those two conditions. We know that for many people, particularly in certain parts of the country where there is far less sunlight, the wint

Health committee  I think it's a great question, one that I don't have a simple answer to. One of the few benefits of the COVID situation currently is that it has increased the sense of community and collaboration across the country and between organizations and such. This is a topic that's been s

Health committee  Thank you very much for this opportunity, Mr. Chair. The COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to an ongoing and expanding mental health crisis for Canadians and for the systems, institutions and professionals that provide mental health care across the country. The mental health imp