Combating the stigma of mental illness – an online course

Title: Combating Stigma – an online course
Availability: online until May 24, 2017
Location: https://www.mdcme.ca/courseinfo.asp?id=190
Cost: No cost
CME Credits: 2 CFPC Mainpro-M1 credits for family physicians
Registration: Online
Languages: English and French

Description of Combating Stigma
People living with a mental illness often say stigma can be harder to live with than the illness itself. Some of the most devastating stigma happens when they seek help from doctors and other health professionals. Eliminating that stigma is a major priority, yet there are few programs designed specifically for health professionals - especially for physicians.

Combating Stigma is a web-based course created by a partnership of organizations including the Mental Health Commission of Canada, Mood Disorders Society of Canada (MDSC), the Canadian Medical Association, the Canadian Psychiatric Association, Bell Canada and Memorial University. The program was designed by Dr Thomas Ungar and Dr Rivian Weinerman, both psychiatrists and former family doctors who are well acquainted with learning needs related to stigma. The course takes a couple of hours to complete and includes elements important for stigma reduction among health professionals. These include personal testimonials from persons with lived experience of a mental illness who are in recovery, transformative learning/myth-busting through education and reflection exercises, skills-based information and the biologic correlations associated with mental illness.

Learning objectives
After completing this course you will be able to:
1. Examine your attitudes, beliefs and behaviors toward persons with mental health problems, towards mental health providers, and to the social context and structures of health care delivery
2. Identify mental health problems as bio psychosocial including real organic disease
3. Describe an organized approach to the treatment of mental health issues using simple practical skills and competencies that work within a busy clinical setting.
4. Develop an increased level of comfort and interest in addressing Mental Health problems and effectively combat the various types of Mental health stigma in one's practice and health care system.

Evaluation Results of Combating Stigma
The course has gone through rigorous evaluation, and shows it is effective at reducing stigma. (Please email Romie Christie for the evaluation report.)

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Contact Information: Romie Christie rchristie@mentalhealthcommission.ca