A voice for mental health care

Improving systems, addressing stigma and raising awareness– these are the goals of St. Joseph’s Mental Health Care Patients’ Council. Through volunteering their time, skills and experience, Patients’ Council members find their voices as they support and advocate for their peers. The council is composed of individuals with lived mental health care experience, including inpatients, outpatients and former patients.

The council works in partnership with professional and clinical caregivers to ensure the best possible quality of life and standard of care is available at Parkwood Institute’s Finch Family Mental Health Care Building, Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care and in the community at large.

Current Patients’ Council Chair, Bill Lee, has been involved with the council since its early days. After facing mental health challenges and hospitalization in his youth, Bill developed a passion for working with organizations like Community Living, the Psychiatric Survivors Network of Elgin and the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA).

“I can't look down on people and say, ‘I don't want nothing to do with you.’ Because I know what I've gone through in my life in the last 50 years, I can't turn away from things like that,” says Bill.

In 1995, when St. Joseph’s was looking to establish a Patients’ Council, Bill knew he wanted to be involved. He joined a committee to help get the council off the ground and has served as chair multiple times over the past 20 years. He enjoys the supportive social environment of Patients’ Council, where he leads discussions at monthly meetings and listens to people’s stories.

Council members also have the opportunity to sit on hospital committees to ensure that patient perspectives are included in the organization's planning and policymaking. Patients’ Council representatives share issues, highlight opportunities for quality improvement, as well as collaborate with staff and administration for positive change. That is how Chris Boyd, the council’s current vice-chair, found her voice.

After a difficult inpatient stay, Chris spoke with a staff member who encouraged her to write about her experience. Chris’ letter was read by the then Vice President of St. Joseph’s Mental Health Care Program, and the concerns raised led to policy changes impacting how care was delivered.

“After that, I said, ‘It works, this advocacy stuff works,’” Chris recalls.

Her interest in advocacy work then began in earnest. At first, Chris felt too shy to sit on committees and talk to staff, but over time she grew more comfortable speaking up and she learned how to approach advocacy, now her favourite part of being on Patients’ Council.

“I realized I liked this. If I've got an idea, I can speak up and these people actually listen to me. Maybe not all the time, but enough to make me satisfied,” Chris says. She now describes Patients’ Council as “her happy place,” where she can contribute to her community and make a difference in ways that suit her strengths.