Supervising Peer Workers: A Toolkit for Implementing and Supporting Successful Peer Staff Roles in Mainstream Mental Health and SubstanceUse/Addiction Organizations

a collection of infographic posters. This Inqboard is based on the article, "The prevalence of problem gambling and gambling-related behaviours among older adults in Ontario" in the Journal of Gambling Issues by Mark Van Der Maas. 

Click on the image to download PDF version of the poster. 

Depression is the leading cause of ill health and disability worldwide. More than 300 million people around the world are now living with depression (WHO). Thankfully, international researchers are working on better understanding this important issue. Here are summaries and talking points from four brand-new studies on depression. Can you imagine how these research finding could inform your work?

"...the ninth-lowest obesity rate in the world and the third-longest expectancy for a healthy life, you could be forgiven for thinking that South Korea is some sort of wellness paradise. However, South Korea has one of the worst mental health problems in the industrialized world."

Researchers have developed a cellphone app that uses sonar to monitor someone's breathing rate and sense when an opioid overdose has occurred.

Tragically, there were 2,066 apparent opioid-related deaths in Canada between January and June 2018; 94% were accidental. During an overdose, a person breathes slower or stops breathing altogether. These symptoms are reversible with the drug naloxone if caught in time. But people who use opioids by themselves have no way of asking for help in the event of an overdose.

Widely used physical health drugs may help treat serious mental illness

Summary: Medications commonly used to combat physical health diseases, such as high blood pressure, could bring significant benefits to people with serious mental illnesses (SMI) such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or non-affective psychoses, according to a large cohort study.

Check out our new podcast series ReInspired where we dive into one research article at a time to understand why it’s important and how it might impact people’s lives. Throughout the series, we will explore different mental health and addictions topics and how you can apply the research to your work.

I was in England over the Christmas break and the topic of screen time for children came up, which caught my attention for both personal and work reasons.  The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health says parents should take a balanced  approach to screen time and that it cannot be prescriptive.  This is different from Canadian guidance which recommends no screen time for children under 2 and only one hour a day for children 2-4 years old.