The Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC) is funding a national human rights project that will examine issues of equality, dignity and inclusion for people with mental illness. The goal of the project, a collaboration between Canadian Mental Health Association, Winnipeg Region, the Public Interest Law Centre of Legal Aid Manitoba and the MHCC’s Mental Health and the Law Advisory Committee, is to conduct research related to mental health, human rights and relevant law, policies and service standards.
Research and development for the18-month project is being guided by a group of individuals who have experienced mental health issues. This consulting group will include two representatives from each of the pre-determined pilot jurisdictions of Manitoba, Nova Scotia and British Columbia, as well as one from Quebec and one from the Northwest Territories.
The project objectives are to:
- Develop instruments to evaluate the extent to which human rights are addressed in legislation, policies and service standards relating to persons experiencing mental illness;
- Conduct a preliminary assessment of the degree to which the human rights of persons with mental illness are protected and advanced in existing federal and provincial legislation;
- Draft a set of core standards for mental health services that reflect human rights and social inclusion principles; and,
- Create a strategic plan to guide the dissemination of the instruments to provincial and federal jurisdictions in Canada, including instruction on their use.
For more information about the project, visit www.cmhawpg.mb.ca.
See the project press release, “National Project Aims to Highlight Human Rights Issues for Persons with Mental Illness,” June 28, 2010, available atwww.cmhawpg.mb.ca.