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 The
PPAO regularly engages in stakeholder consultation, public education and
information sessions on issues of importance to consumer/survivors of mental
health services, including least restraint, informed consent, privacy and
personal health information, and human rights.
Please
contact our head office or regional office for more information. | |
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Welcome to the PPAO
The Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office protects and promotes the rights and
entitlements of Ontarians with mental illness through advocacy, rights advice
and education. |
We envision a society where the rights of all individuals,
regardless of mental illness or disability, are respected, protected and
realized. Read more about us and our mandate here.
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| PPAO Commends Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police for Sealing Mental Health Records | |
The Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office (PPAO) today commended the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP) for its new guideline protecting the privacy of persons with mental illness who encounter police as front-line emergency health care responders.
Until now, police forces across Ontario have been individually responsible for deciding whether to publicly disclose mental health information about someone who has been subjected even to a routine background check.
An inconsistent patchwork of procedures often led to unfair disclosure of non-criminal information on routine background checks and vulnerable-sector screenings, leading to discriminatory hiring practices by employers and volunteer organizations.
"By prohibiting the release of non-criminal mental health information collected by police, the new guideline is a meaningful step forward that will protect tens of thousands of Ontarians from stigma and discrimination" says Ryan Fritsch, the PPAO's legal counsel.
Vahe Kehyayan, Director of the PPAO says "We commend the OACP for developing the guideline in consultation with the Police Record Check Coalition and our office to better protect Ontarians with disabilities from criminalization and marginalization.”
For 28 years, the Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office has provided rights advice and advocacy services to patients with mental illness in Ontario. In 2010, the PPAO provided rights advice 25,000 times and advocacy services to more than 3,500 clients.
Since 2006, the PPAO has lobbied government and police forces as Co-Chair to the Police Record Check Coalition. The Coalition has dozens of institutional and individual members including the Ontario Association of Patient Councils and the Canadian Mental Health Association, Ontario Division.
Fritsch said the PPAO is urging all police forces across the province to adopt and implement the new guideline. "Persons with disabilities deserve every equal opportunity to work and volunteer in their communities without barriers or fear of discrimination," he said.
The new Guideline will be made available to the public on the OACP website. The PPAO has also prepared a self-advocacy InfoGuide.
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| PPAO Launches Monthly Lecture Series, "Living your Rights" | |
Living Your Rights is a FREE monthly education series to introduce & inform those involved in the mental health system about their rights, gain a clear understanding of the core principles of mental health law & allied legislation, learn strategies for handling mental health law issues and network with leaders in the field & peers who share your challenges.
This first lecture, "A Guide to the Mental Health Act", takes place July 7, 2011 at 2:00PM at the North York General Hospital and features Stanley Stylianos, Program Manager, and Ryan Fritsch, Legal Counsel, Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office.
For further information and to register, email Theresa at Central LHIN C/S Network: clhincsnetwork@gmail.com or telephone 647-203-3726.
Presented by the Central LHIN Consumer/Survivor Network & the Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office. |
| PPAO concerned with Retirement Home Act draft regulations | |
On April 8, 2011, the PPAO filed submissions to the Ontario Senior's Secretariat regarding the recently drafted Regulations under the Retirement Homes Act (S.O. 2010, Ch. 11). Certain sections of the Act remain inoperative until the Regulations come into force, including important protections on background checks and vulnerable sector screenings, the use of restraints in retirement homes, assessment and care planning with the participation of the resident, and the availability of rights advice to particularly vulnerable residents.
The PPAO raised additional concerns related to the potential use of covert medication and recommended that the prescribed use of restraints will inevitably lead to abuses without significantly enhanced protections. |
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| PPAO takes stand against cross-border mental health disclosures | |
A recent article in the Toronto Star highlights how personal health information is finding it's way across the border -- and being used to discriminate against basic civil liberties.
" Canadian woman denied entry to U.S. because of suicide attempt" describes how Lois Kamenitz arrived at Pearson International Airport in November, hoping to board a flight to California. But she was stunned to learn that U.S. border officials were barring her entry. The reason: Years ago, she attempted suicide.
As the article notes, it is an issue the PPAO is hearing about with increasing frequency:
It’s not an isolated incident, says Ryan Fritsch, legal counsel for the Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office. He has heard of about eight similar cases in the past year, all involving non-criminal contact between police and people with mental health issues — records of contact that end up at the Department of Homeland Security.
"These kinds of disclosures and the retention of this kind of information has a chilling effect on persons with mental illness," said Fritsch, who fears people will think twice before calling 911. "A mental crisis should not be a lifelong sentence for stigma and discrimination." |
| PPAO Participates in TVO's "The Agenda with Steve Paikin" | | On January 7, 2011, TVO's "The Agenda with Steve Paikin" played host to a number of mental health experts discussing "Ontario's Mental Health Crisis" and the recently released report Respect, Recovery, Resilience: Recommendations for Ontario's 10-Year Mental Health and Addictions Strategy. The panel included PPAO legal counsel Ryan Fritsch who strongly supported the need for formally established, statutorily mandated advocacy program as a means to realize the rights and protections of persons with mental health issues. TVO has created a website for the show and the video is below.
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