Children's Mental Health in the News
Below are general news items about child and youth mental health. For stories about clinical matters in child and youth mental health, please go here.

Brampton student's video changing the view
Friday, May 10, 2013North Park Secondary School student Lankesh Patel was selected winner of Children’s Mental Health Ontario’s (CMHO) annual video contest held as part of Children’s Mental Health Week. Children and Youth Services Minister Teresa Piruzza announced the winner at a Peel District School Board mental health awareness event this week and awarded the Brampton teenager his first-place certificate. Gordon Floyd, Children’s Mental Health Ontario (CMHO) president and CEO, also pres...
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Neskantaga First Nation finds hope after suicide crisis
Friday, May 17, 2013Artwork created by young people in Neskantaga First Nation will soon be on display in Toronto as part of an effort to help the community recover from a suicide crisis. The fly-in community, located about 480 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay, declared a state of emergency April 17 after two young men killed themselves in less than a week. "In our community it was very devastating. It still is," said First Nation counsellor Kelvin Moonias. "The tremendous loss we had." Moonias said he had felt ...
Full ArticleTalking about children's mental health
Friday, May 17, 2013It can be difficult to tell whether your teen is just moody or if there’s actually something more going on there and, if there is, what can be done. Renowned Canadian adolescent mental health specialist Dr. Stanley Kutcher provided answers to questions for a room full of curious parents and caregivers at the Oakville Conference Centre last week as part of Children’s Mental Health Week (May 6-12). There were a variety of concerns brought up by parents including video game usage, what ...
Full ArticleStudents learn mental health challenges
Thursday, May 16, 2013Grades 6 and 7 students at W. H. Day Elementary School took part in a fun, yet educational and potentially life-changing event May 9. In efforts of creating awareness during children’s mental health week, recognized across the province from May 5 to 11, elementary schools around Bradford West Gwillimbury took part in group walks and activities. But it was W. H. Day that felt the true impact of what mental health is really all about. Special Const. Elisabeth Aschwanden, one of two elementar...
Full ArticleRoyal Bank makes big donation to children's mental health in Durham
Tuesday, May 14, 2013OSHAWA -- Four Durham hospitals got a boost on Wednesday with hefty donations from the Royal Bank of Canada. The bank is donating $325,000 to Lakeridge Health, with the bulk of it -- $250,000 -- supporting mental health services through the child, youth and family program. The money will be used to support the new child and youth mental health unit at the Oshawa hospital. As well, $75,000 will be split evenly for a pediatric room in the Bowmanville hospital's emergency room, an infant resuscitat...
Full ArticleHincks-Dellcrest Centre helps youth facing mental health issues
Monday, May 13, 2013With wait times for children’s mental health stretching as long as a year and a health care system that is fragmented and difficult to navigate, the Hincks-Dellcrest Centre is looking to find ways to streamline the process. The organization, which has treatment centres on Jarvis Street downtown and at Sheppard and Leslie streets in North York, is embarking on a clinical transformation that aims to make access to services easier and place a greater focus on those who use its services....
Full ArticleYouth Mental Illness: Stigma, Lack Of Awareness About Mental Health Have Huge Costs For Kids, Teens
Saturday, May 11, 2013Rachel Regula didn’t have a carefree childhood. At age five, she switched kindergarten classes because of the persistent bullying she faced. She was a victim of name-calling and often excluded from groups on the playground. “It got so bad that my mom ended up taking me out of the school I was in to put me into a new one,” she tells The Huffington Post Canada. The bullying didn’t stop there. In the fourth grade, Regula was clinically diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hypera...
Full ArticleBruce Power Supports Youth Mental Health
Friday, May 10, 2013Young people suffering from mental illness will still have a place to turn to in Grey and Bruce. Keystone Child, Youth and Family Services is receiving a 100-thousand dollar donation from Bruce Power to keep the residency program going in Owen Sound. Bruce-Grey Executive Director Phil Dodd says the residency program is a 7-bed co-ed facility that provides short-term assessment and stabilization of young people, typically teenagers, suffering from depression, anxiety and other mental illnesses. H...
Full ArticleIncreasing mental health issues weighing on teachers
Thursday, May 9, 2013Many teachers are feeling mental health worker has been added to their job description, which is leading to stress and burnout in some cases. The findings of an online, anonymous survey of teachers about the mental health of students was released Wednesday to the Youth Mental Health Partnership – a round table of community mental health agencies and service provider, convened by the directors of the public and Catholic school boards. The findings of the survey by the Chatham-Kent Public H...
Full ArticleMental illness awareness a focus for local high school athlete
Thursday, May 9, 2013An all-star high school student athlete who once struggled with mental health issues now helps others cope. Sylvia Motruk from Harrow is behind the Ironhawk Duathlon. It's a fundraising effort that raises awareness and money to help young people with mental health issues. Motruk says that after losing her grandfather, she struggled with depression and self mutilation. "For myself, when I would look in the mirror, I thought I was overweight or that I wasn't as skinny or as pretty as my friends o...
Full ArticleIdentifying Mental Health Issues
Thursday, May 9, 2013The St. Clair Catholic District School Board and Lambton Kent District School Board have partnered to help teachers better identify mental health issues in students. Teachers across both boards were surveyed about youth mental health and revealed they feel there is a lack of available mental health services in the community. "Teachers aren’t professionals with respect to mental health, what they’re expert at is teaching kids," says Paul Wubben, Director of Education for the St. Clai...
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