New First Aid program will help both first responders and the
general public provide mental health support in emergency
situations
OTTAWA, Jan. 26, 2016 /CNW/ - The Canadian Red
Cross, Canada's leading provider of first aid and CPR programs for
over 50 years, and Bell Let's Talk today announced a $150,000 investment in new initiatives focused on
mental health training for Canadians.
"Good mental health is the key to a safe and healthy community,"
says Conrad Sauvé, president and CEO of the Canadian Red Cross.
"Thanks to the generous support of Bell Let's Talk, we are proud to
launch these new programs that will empower both individual
Canadians and first responders to provide compassion and care to
those experiencing emotional trauma and mental health
distress."
- Canadian Red Cross will incorporate mental health programming
into its standard first aid training, enabling individual Canadians
to recognize the signs and symptoms of a developing mental health
emergency and provide comfort and care until professional help
arrives.
- Launch of a new Canadian Red Cross program focused on training
first responders to look beyond physical symptoms and evaluate
emotional well-being following an emergency such as a natural
disaster.
- This new mental health training component will also be
incorporated into the new section on Mental Health under the Learn
tab in the Red Cross First Aid App, supporting both the general
public and first responders who use the app.
"This partnership between the Canadian Red Cross and Bell Let's
Talk will provide Canadians everywhere with the resources to
recognize the signs and symptoms of mental health distress during
an emergency," said Mary Deacon,
Chair of Bell Let's Talk. "Initiatives like this are a crucial step
in building mental health consideration into every level of health
care, and to ensuring Canadians experiencing a mental health crisis
get the support they need as quickly as possible."
New research commissioned by the Red Cross shows that while the
vast majority of Canadians (98%) feel it's important to respond to
a mental health emergency, less than half would be comfortable
taking action. The research further revealed that younger Canadians
(age 18 to 34) were most likely to recognize a developing mental
health emergency than other age categories. The survey results
found that most Canadians did not feel confident in their ability
to assist with a range of mental health issues*:
- Depression: 51 per cent
- Suicidal thoughts: 59 per cent.
- Acute stress: 61 per cent
- Psychotic episode: 73 per cent
The delivery of first aid is a crucial component of care for an
individual developing a mental health problem or in a mental health
crisis. The Red Cross trains over 644,000 people in First Aid &
CPR each year, including some 425,000 participants in
Emergency and Standard First Aid courses, who will now receive
mental health training. The Red Cross curriculum is delivered
through a network of more than 3,500 Training Partners across the
country, including municipalities, schools and businesses.In
Canada, every four hours, people affected by a disaster receive
help from the Red Cross.
The integration of mental health training into the Learn
tab on Mental Health in the Red Cross First Aid App will be
completed in Fall 2016, while mental health training will be fully
integrated into first aid courses by Winter 2017. The training
program for first responders will be available across Canada in
2017.
Bell Let'sTalk Day is tomorrow
On January 27, Bell Let's Talk Day, Bell will donate
5 cents to Canadian mental health
programs for every text message, wireless and long distance call
made by Bell customers, every tweet using #BellLetsTalk, and every
Facebook share of the Bell Let's Talk Day image at
Facebook.com/BellLetsTalk.
More than 122 million messages of support were sent on Bell
Let's Talk Day 2015. After the first 5 annual Bell Let's Talk Days,
Bell has committed a total of $73,623,413.80 to support mental health
initiatives across the country.
Bell's donations are made at no extra charge to Bell Let's Talk
Day participants, though normal long distance or text charges, if
any, apply.
*Online survey by Harris Poll on behalf of the Canadian Red
Cross from January 8 to 15, 2016,
among 1,001 Canadian adults ages 18 and older.
About Bell Let's Talk
The Bell Let's Talk initiative promotes Canadian mental health with
national awareness and antistigma campaigns, like Bell Let's Talk
Day, and significant Bell funding of community care and access,
research, and workplace initiatives. To learn more, please visit
Bell.ca/LetsTalk.
About the Canadian Red Cross
The Canadian Red Cross is the leading provider of prevention and
safety training in the country; training more 1.3 million Canadians
in emergency preparedness, first aid, swimming lessons and violence
and abuse prevention.
For more information, contact:
Canadian Red Cross
Canadian Red Cross media line,
1-877-599-9602
Québec media can call 1-888-418-9111
Bell
Jacqueline
Michelis
(613)785-1427
jacqueline.michelis@bell.ca
@Bell_News
SOURCE Bell Canada