The Weyburn branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association is preparing to hold activities to mark Mental Health Week, set for May 3-8, and remind all residents that mental health is everyone's business.
Mental Health Week will begin with a proclamation by Mayor Debra Button on May 3, with good mental health practices to be promoted by the CMHA.
The annual Mayor's Luncheon will take place at McKenna Hall on Tuesday, May 4, with Dr. Nuelle Novik, assistant professor of Social Work at the University of Regina as the guest speaker.
The luncheon gets underway at 11:30 a.m., and will include greetings from Mayor Button, as well as from Duane Schultz of Sun Country Health Region, and David Nelson, executive director of CMHA for Saskatchewan.
Dr. Novik has practiced in the areas of mental health and addictions, child protection, youth services, social assistance, medical social work, clinical therapy, rural social work, seniors and aging, grief and bereavement and palliative care. She has lived and practiced in Weyburn, Estevan, Yorkton, the Northwest Territories, Yukon and Nunavut, and in Regina.
In addition to her work with the Faculty of Social Work, Nuelle also has a practice as an employee and family assistance counsellor with Family Service Regina. She has also served on various community boards and associations, and currently serves on the council of Saskatchewan Association of Social Workers, the Regina Community Women's Centre board, and the South Sask. Regional Council of the Red Cross.
The CMHA believes that a key factor in maintaining good mental health is keeping a balance in one's life. People are encouraged to invest in their lives in a number of ways, including in one's family, in one's friends, the community, the workplace and in one's self.
One of the major economic costs in Canada is mental illness. In Canada, mental illness is the second leading cause of human disability and premature death. Every day, a half-million Canadians are absent from work due to psychiatric problems. It is the number one cause of disability in Canada, accounting for nearly 30 per cent of disability claims and 70 per cent of the total costs.
