Statement from Catherine Zahn, President and CEO, CAMH
For over a decade, CAMH and other mental health partners have been advocating for provincial oversight and accountability for the mental health system.
Provincial responsibility and oversight will help drive better outcomes for those who live with mental illness. As a system, we should expect public scrutiny of wait times and health outcomes to include mental healthcare. This function exists to improve access to and effectiveness of care for other complex conditions, and mental illness should be no different. A provincial oversight function can monitor for quality of care and it can direct public investment. Implementation of care pathways and integrated care processes can then drive quality of care in all of its domains through standardization, measurement, improvement and accountability.
We are very pleased to see our advocacy enacted in legislation and I look forward to providing advice to the Minister about design and implementation that will improve care and supports for our patients, today and tomorrow, in our local communities and across the province.