Mental health

Promoting Mental Health in a Post-Pandemic Context: Factors to Target and Actions to Prioritize at the Municipal and Community Levels

The INSPQ was mandated by the Direction générale de la santé publique of the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux to produce a knowledge synthesis of the scientific literature in order to 1) identify, in literature reviews, the factors associated with mental health in the context of a pandemic or a disaster, factors upon which municipalities can take action; and 2) identify actions at the municipal or community level that influence these factors and help promote mental health in the aftermath of a disaster.

The reviews analyzed show a strong convergence on several factors associated with mental health status, including those related to the social environment: social support, taking pro-social actions (e.g., offering support to friends or neighbours during lockdown), social isolation and feelings of loneliness, or restricting contact and periods of confinement. The same is true for factors related to the socioeconomic status of individuals, including income…

Monitoring Attention Deficit Disorder with or Without Hyperactivity (ADHD) in Children and Young Adults in Québec: Medication Use

Highlights

  • This report presents data on the prescription of medications for attention deficit disorder with or without hyperactivity (ADHD) taken from the Québec Integrated Chronic Disease Surveillance System (QICDSS). Estimates were obtained from longitudinal monitoring between April 1, 2000, and March 31, 2020, for all individuals aged 24 years and younger who were eligible for Québec’s public prescription drug insurance plan (PPDIP).
  • The results show a steady increase in the prescription of ADHD medications over time. In 2019–2020, 56,080 Quebecers (7.7%) aged from 1 to 24 years enrolled in the PPDIP received at least one prescription for ADHD medication.
  • The percentage of ADHD medication prescribing differs by the sex and age of the person.
  • The prevalence of ADHD medication prescribing varied considerably across regions, ranging from 3.2% to 14.4%.
  • People living in highly economically advantaged environments have…

The Roles of Public Health in Population Mental Health and Wellness Promotion

This report represents a guidance document on the roles of public health in population mental health and wellness promotion (PMHWP) across Canada. In the context of the current COVID-19 pandemic, which has brought mental health to the forefront of countries’ responses to the pandemic, building the workforce and organizational capacity in public health for PMHWP is even more relevant now than ever before.

This document was developed by the National Collaborating Centre for Healthy Public Policy (NCCHPP), and builds on conversations which occurred at a Forum on Population Mental Health and Wellness Promotion (the Forum), in February-March of 2018. The Forum was organized by the six National Collaborating Centres for Public Health (NCCs), in collaboration with four partner organizations: the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC), and the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC). T…

Disparities in mental health and its determinants among Québec high school students by language of instruction

This paper provides a comparative analysis of several mental health indicators and determinants by language of instruction. All data discussed in this analysis is from the Québec Health Survey of High School Students 2016–2017.

For most of the indicators analyzed, there is no disparity between students in English and French high schools. When there is a gap between the two groups, it can be to the disadvantage of students taught in either language.

For example, a greater proportion of students in English high schools reported that they:

  • Had been medically diagnosed with depression
  • Had been medically diagnosed with an eating disorder
  • Did not feel healthy
  • Slept less than recommended during the school week
  • Had poor social support from their family
  • Had low overall self-efficacy
  • Had been bullied at school, on the way to school, or online during the school year
  • Had b…

Monitoring of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts during COVID-19 from the Emergency Management Information System

Highlights

This report contributes to characterizing the potential impact of COVID-19 on suicidal behaviours in Quebec and on emergency department (ED) visits due to suicide attempts and suicidal ideation for the pre-pandemic (2014–2019) and the pandemic (2020–2021) periods. This is initiative was undertaken by the INSPQ as part of its monitoring activities.

  • In the years leading up to the pandemic, a gradual decrease in the annual rate of ED visits for suicide attempts in Quebec was observed, from 65/100,000 people in 2014 to 50/100,000 people in 2019.
  • Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, the annual rate of ED visits due to suicide attempts appears to have decreased slightly more than the trend observed since 2016.
  • The upward trend in the annual rate of ED visits for suicidal ideation observed in the five years preceding the pandemic was interrupted during the pandemic. This rate decreased from 415/100,000 people in 2019 to 348/100…

Indigenous-specific Mental Health and/or Wellness Strategies in Canada

The NCCHPP produced a Scan of Mental Health Strategies to show what is being developed in the field of population mental health across Canada. This Scan provides an overview of mental health and wellness and related strategies through comparative tables and summaries, with a particular emphasis on work related to the promotion of mental health and the prevention of mental illnesses.

This document presents the information contained in the online comparative table that lists the most recent Indigenous-specific mental health and/or wellness strategies in Canada. In developing this section of the Scan, a search of the grey literature was carried out, and completed by reaching out to key informants in certain provinces/territories. Briefly, we searched for Indigenous-specific mental health strategies and suicide prevention strategies in each province and territory, as well as pan-Canadian strategies. In addition, Indigenous-specific wellness strategies were also identified and in…

Scan of Canadian Provincial and Territorial Strategies in Mental Health

The NCCHPP produced a Scan of Mental Health Strategies1 to show what is being developed in the field of population mental health across Canada. This scan provides an overview of mental health and wellness and related strategies through comparative tables and summaries, with a particular emphasis on work related to the promotion of mental health and the prevention of mental illnesses.

This document presents the information contained in the online comparative table that lists the most recent Canadian provincial and territorial strategies in mental health. In developing this section of the Scan, a search of the grey literature was carried out, and completed by reaching out to key informants in certain provinces/territories. Briefly, we searched for mental health strategies in each province and territory. We did not, however, search for provincial or territorial wellness strategies though these may include dimensions of mental health. The content is therefore not necessarily a c…

Strategies Related to Suicide Prevention in Canada

The NCCHPP produced a Scan of Mental Health Strategies1 to show what is being developed in the field of population mental health across Canada. This Scan provides an overview of mental health and wellness and related strategies through comparative tables and summaries, with a particular emphasis on work related to the promotion of mental health and the prevention of mental illnesses.

This document presents the information contained in the online comparative table that lists the most recent strategies related to suicide prevention in Canada. In developing this section of the Scan, a search of the grey literature was carried out, and completed by reaching out to key informants in certain provinces/territories. Briefly, we searched for suicide prevention strategies in each province and territory, as well as pan-Canadian strategies. The same procedure was used for identifying Indigenous-specific strategies. Despite this, the content is not necessarily a comprehensive review of a…

Post-Disaster Mental Health Impacts Surveillance Toolkit

Regardless of its nature, a major disaster such as an earthquake, flooding, an ice storm, a nuclear transport accident or an attack can engender a broad range of impacts on individual health and well-being and on the economy and the environment. The authorities usually properly document the immediate effects, especially as regards physical health and economic aspects. However, mental health impacts can be perceived as harder to document.

Individuals who have experienced a disaster can develop or exacerbate mental health problems that may appear several months after a disaster. It is necessary and crucial that mental health resources and services be available to help a community recover from a disaster. To ensure continued support for the community by offering sufficient, appropriate services, monitoring of the mental health impacts in the population affected becomes important. It should continue several years after an event in certain cases.

In Québec, epidemiologica…

Knowledge Synthesis of Relevant Spheres of Action for Promoting the Mental Health of Young Adults

The Institut national de santé publique du Québec has been mandated to prepare a knowledge synthesis for the Direction générale de la santé publique of the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux on reference points underpinning actions to enhance mental health, on life situations encountered during the passage to adulthood and the resources that can have a positive effect on the mental health, and on the relevant spheres of action to promote mental health in young adults. To do this, a literature review from scientific literature and from grey literature was conducted.

This allowed the identification of four reference points: looking at mental health as a concept distinct from mental disorders, focusing on helping each and every person reach their potential by building on their strengths instead of focusing on their problems, addressing the social determinants of mental health and their distribution, and adopting a life-course approach.

The literature reviewed…