Mental Health Care

A fitness instructor works with patients at the Mental Health Care Building.

At St. Joseph’s we are committed to helping individuals with mental illness achieve their personal goals while supporting the patient’s family/support network. Our vision at St. Joseph’s is to earn complete confidence in the care we provide and to make a lasting difference in the quest to live fully. 

Mental health care has seen a vast amount of change in our community. In June 2013, St. Joseph’s opened Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care in Elgin County and in November 2014, two of St. Joseph’s health care facilities – Parkwood Hospital and Regional Mental Health Care London – came together in one location under one new name: Parkwood Institute, with the opening of the new Mental Health Care Building.

Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care is a facility for individuals with a mental illness who have come into contact with the law.

The Mental Health Care Building at Parkwood Institute is dedicated to those with severe and persistent mental illness in need of longer-stay specialized mental health care.

“Mental health is a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to her or his own community.”
~Mental Health Commission of Canada

Recovery philosophy of care

The mental health care programs at St. Joseph’s strive to provide a positive, respectful, culturally sensitive environment that understands the unique needs of every individual. Our care providers assist patients in their personal journey beyond the limitations of illness and toward recovery.

The overarching goal of the recovery philosophy of care is grounded in a treatment program which focuses on helping each patient live a full and meaningful life. St. Joseph's works closely with patients and families to identify goals and learn what is important to them on their journey to recovery.

Recovery, in mental health care, is not defined by the absence of the illness (as an individual may always live with mental illness) instead it describes the management of the illness and symptoms. Management involves coping with mental illness and continuing to thrive in the community.

Through intensive work with our care teams, patients are able to develop new skills needed to successfully reintegrate back into the community.

St. Joseph's is a member of Mental Health Partners

Since 2010, four of Ontario’s specialized mental health care facilities (CAMH, Ontario Shores, The Royal and Waypoint) have worked together as Mental Health Partners to improve outcomes for clients who experience addiction and/or mental illness. We are pleased to share that the partnership has expanded to include all specialized psychiatric hospital providers across Ontario, of which St. Joseph’s Health Care London is now a member, effective 2021.

Mental Health Partners is now comprised of ten partner hospitals in total:

• Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

• North Bay Regional Health Centre

• Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences

• Providence Care

• Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre

• St. Joseph’s Care Group / Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre

• St. Joseph’s Health Care London

• St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton

• Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care

Together, we provide a continuum of care for people living with mental illness and/or addictions across Ontario – from specialized inpatient acute and rehabilitative care, to outpatient services for people living in the community. In collaboration with system partners, we offer collective support as well as specialized clinical and innovation expertise to Ontario Health, towards building a comprehensive, connected mental health and addictions system of care for Ontarians.

logos of Mental Health Partner organizations
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