Improve Access to Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Services for the English-speaking Population of the Capitale-Nationale Region

This report aims to examine the challenges and barriers that the English-speaking population of the Capitale-Nationale Region faces in accessing mental health and suicide prevention services. To ensure a current representation of the reality faced by our target population, we opted to use the geolocation model developed throughout the Geodata project. This allowed us a real-time investigation of the services requested by the English-speaking population and ensure a reliable portrait of their needs. To accurately describe the challenges faced by the English-speaking population in accessing mental health and suicide prevention services, interviews were conducted with several stakeholders, and key messages are presented in the relevant sections of this report. In addition, following the internal interviews with key personnel, several personnel from other regions of Quebec were engaged to share initiatives and models used to address similar challenges faced by the English-speaking population in their region. This allowed us to directly compare the region covered by the CIUSSS de la Capitale-Nationale and other regions of Quebec. To complement the research conducted in the province of Quebec, an extensive literature review was undertaken to explore initiatives and models used in other countries where, like Canada, there is more than one official language. Finally, we examined official initiatives aimed at other minority populations (i.e., immigrants and refugees). Based on the above, we conclude this report with several actionable recommendations for the Capitale-Nationale region on improving access to mental health and suicide prevention services for the English-speaking population.