Mental health advocates fear shutdown of national online resource will leave gaps

As the end of funding for a national mental health portal comes to an end, advocates across the country are calling for appropriate alternatives.

In St. John's, Kristi Allan says when she first heard the news of Wellness Together Canada shutting down, she felt defeated and angry.

"I was so upset. I remember where I was sitting and just the feeling that washed over me. It was scary," said Allan.

"People who need that service, it's like everybody is just being completely invalidated."

Allan is one of many users of Wellness Together Canada across the country since its launch in April 2020 to support those with declining mental health due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since then, the website says it's had 4.2 million visitors, who came to access information and direct mental health and substance use services.

Last month, Health Canada announced the platform will shut down on April 3, citing an end of "the emergency phase" of the pandemic.

Yet Allan, a vocal advocate for more accessible long-term mental health care in Newfoundland and Labrador, said the portal is still needed, as it offers one hour of counselling plus followups and therefore more continuity than a traditional crisis line. That, in addition to round-the-clock access to support, she said, was why she recommended the service to anyone in need.

"When you call someone when you're in distress, you have to explain your story. And for a lot of people, that's super-complex. It's very hard. And if you have people who are following up with you, then you don't have to repeat that," said Allan.

"I have a specific friend who can't afford therapy who has used that. I don't know what she's going to do now."

Allan, who has also used Wellness Together Canada herself, said losing access to the platform feels like "losing a lifeline."

"I had used them in really dark times. I am so privileged to have a counsellor. But sometimes, you can't see them at the drop of a hat. And this felt like a safe place to call," said Allan. "To lose it means on all those nights that I'm terrified, I will feel alone."

Anthony Esposti has heard similar sentiments. He's a board member of the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health, and the CEO of addiction resources centre CAPSA — for Community Addictions Peer Support Association — which offers peer support groups through the portal.

"From the perspective of CAMIMH, we just see it as bad mental health and substance-use health policy," he said. "This is a sector that has been chronically underfunded, and it's created a system of care that's very fractured and very difficult to navigate. And this one portal provided this low-barrier access to care."

While Health Canada's February statement cited "some improvements in the mental health and well-being of Canadians since the lows of the COVID-19 pandemic," Esposti said it hasn't rebounded since the pandemic's start.

Indeed, while a 2023 Statistics Canada survey found that more people described their mental health as excellent or very good than during the height of the pandemic in 2021, it also found that more people had post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety compared with 2020.

Health Canada hasn't responded to a request for comment.

While the federal government said provinces and territories are "best placed" to provide mental health care, Newfoundland and Labrador Health Minister Tom Osborne said provincial services already do that — and better.

"Our program Bridge the Gapp has been in place since 2015 and in fact, has been looked at by other provinces," he said. "The vast majority of callers to programs use the provincial program because it is more comprehensive."

He said while round-the-clock access to support is the only gap Wellness Together leaves behind, provincial demand for that service seems to be limited.

"Under the federal program, there were a limited number of after-hour calls beyond the hours of programming that Bridge the Gapp has offered," said Osborne. "So we are looking at and evaluating what the impact of that is, and how we fill that gap."

For Allan, the impact is obvious. She strongly disagrees that provincial services are more comprehensive than the national portal she's scared to lose.

"You cannot meet the same need as Wellness Together if it is not 24/7. That is so important," she said. "I'm a person with lived experience. How dare you say what I need, that you know what I need better than me?"

Allan is calling on the provincial government to extend provincial programs to round-the-clock coverage and to create a stand-alone department of mental health.

"If [the federal government is] saying that the provinces are able to step in and meet that need, then the government of Newfoundland and Labrador has a responsibility," said Allan.

"This is, in my opinion, devastating for Newfoundland and Labrador, and all of Canada."

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