At CMHA branches throughout Ontario more than 4,500 dedicated employees have been working tirelessly throughout the pandemic to ensure Ontarians get the mental health and addictions care they’ve needed.
But ask anyone who works in the community-based mental health and addictions system and they’ll tell you about the exhaustion, emotional fatigue and stress that they and their colleagues are experiencing.
Sadly, community-based workers are leaving for other health-related jobs that are better resourced and provide significantly higher pay.
“Aside from providing high quality care, staff recruitment and retention is now the significant issue for community service providers,” said Camille Quenneville, CEO, CMHA Ontario. “We need a dedicated workforce to ensure that all Ontarians are receiving the mental health and addictions supports that they deserve.”
Without a significant operational funding boost, the human resources crisis that’s crippling the community mental health and addictions sector will only get worse.
© 2022 CMHA Ontario