Promoting the Issues of Mental Health Services in the Outaouais

Mélissa Gélinas

An evening panel and consultation took place as part of the Mental Health Services in the Outaouais event on Tuesday, May 13, at the Maison du Citoyen.

Organized by ReprésentACTION Outaouais, Droits-Accès de l'Outaouais, Action Santé Outaouais, and the partners of Ensemble pour le droit à la santé, this event aimed to foster exchanges and discussions on the issues and challenges of mental health services in the Outaouais, while also providing concrete action.

To this end, panelist Pierre Pariseau-Legault, researcher and professor at the Université du Québec en Outaouais in the Laurentians, provided an update on the situation. According to him, delays in accessing services are undoubtedly one of the biggest problems. "Added to this is the staff shortage," he explained. "Many people leave, saying they don't feel they're helping people since they end up on prescriptions under medical authority." According to him, many decide to pursue other careers or move to the private sector.

"When we look at intervention models in Quebec, we realize that it's a biomedical model that's very prescription-oriented," Pariseau-Legault stated. "I'm not saying that prescribing is useless, but instead, the idea is to promote an intervention model to properly meet the needs of the people who consult us."

Furthermore, one of the biggest stereotypes is the belief that intervention by an expert is required. "More than 90% of mental health problems can be treated on the front line," said Pariseau-Legault. "It depends on the model you adopt, but for me, mental health is very different from psychiatry. It’s a question of creativity and human relationships. It needs room for alternative practices and for testimonials."

To conclude the evening, testimonials and discussion workshops took place.