A recent report from the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) highlights both the challenges and innovations within mental health care in northern Canada, particularly in Nunavut. With the highest suicide and self-harm rates in the country, the territory is seeing a shift in services aimed at addressing these critical issues.
The CMHA’s State of Mental Health in Canada 2024 report points to several positive developments in mental health services in the region, including the integration of Inuit paraprofessionals who are trained to provide culturally relevant support. In addition, a mobile addiction treatment program near Cambridge Bay and a new Inuit-designed addictions treatment center being built in Iqaluit are cited as promising innovations.
However, the report emphasizes that mental health care remains highly unequal across the country, with stark disparities between provinces and territories. Leyna Lowe, national senior research and policy analyst at CMHA, noted that access to care is heavily influenced by geography, with northern and rural areas, especially those with Indigenous populations, facing higher levels of distress and inadequate services.
“This report underscores that Canadians receive vastly different care depending on where they live,” Lowe said in a statement accompanying the report. “People in northern and rural regions, particularly Indigenous and marginalized groups, face significantly worse outcomes.”
In response to the rising mental health crisis, the Nunavut government unveiled a five-year suicide prevention plan in October. This plan includes 25 initiatives aimed at supporting young people, promoting Inuit culture in schools, enhancing employment opportunities, and improving helpline services.
Despite Québec reporting the highest mental health ratings in Canada, Indigenous populations in northern regions continue to face alarming suicide rates and poor living conditions. In Nunavik, northern Québec, the suicide rate in 2019 was more than 13 times the provincial average, with 177.1 deaths per 100,000 people compared to Québec’s overall rate of 13.1.
The report also highlights the dire housing conditions in the region, with 27% of the Nunavik population living in homes that need significant repairs, and 47% residing in overcrowded housing.
In Nunavut, the report found that the self-harm rate was nearly six times higher than the national average, and the suicide rate was nearly seven times greater. Access to mental health care in the territory is limited, with the report noting that Nunavut has about one-third the number of mental health and addiction care providers compared to the national average.
The CMHA is urging the federal government to take decisive action by enshrining mental health care into law, ensuring consistent funding, and allocating 12% of healthcare spending to mental health, addictions, and substance-use services.
With significant gaps in care and alarming statistics, the report underscores the need for urgent, coordinated action to improve mental health support for northern and Indigenous communities.
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