Mental Health Care

Policy Type: Policy resolution Last Reviewed: 2015-Feb-28 Date: 2008-Aug-20 Topics: Population health/ health equity/ public health Health care and patient safety Physician practice/ compensation/ forms Health systems, system funding and performance Resolution: The Canadian Medical Association urges Canadian physicians and their organizations to work together to transform patient care for people with mental illnesses through a strategy, including but not limited to: a) fighting the stigma that exists in our own profession and physician organizations; b) advocating for parity of allocation of resources toward the continuum of mental health care and research; c) promoting an evidence-based mental health system anchored on: strong primary care networks, community-based care, team-based and multidisciplinary care in a public system, adequate social policy supports such as housing and income, and the involvement of primary care and specialist physicians in the planning processes.