New Funding Brings Improved Resources

For Immediate Release - January 12, 2006 (Toronto) - The French Language Services department at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is pleased to announce it has been successful in securing funding from Health Canada through the Société Santé en Français to develop an online network to assist primary health care professionals serving francophone communities across the province in the treatment of addictions and mental health.

The Réseau Francophone de Soutien Professionnel (RFSP) will improve quality of care to the French-speaking community in Ontario by providing access to the latest information about addictions and mental health, including:

Care and treatment options for professionals;
Breaking news and research developments in the field; and
Potential opportunities for online training and education.

The project will improve communication and understanding among professionals by identifying areas of expertise that need strengthening, and promoting better awareness of the cross-linkages between addiction issues and mental health care.

"We have long recognized the need for improved resources for francophone healthcare professionals," says Nancy Mulroney, Director of Organizational Development and French Language Services, CAMH. "This project is a significant step towards meeting these needs."

The project will run from fall 2005 to the end of September 2006, with the website launch in the summer of 2006. CAMH gratefully acknowledges the support of Health Canada and the support of the francophone community in developing this project.

The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health is a Pan American Health Organization and World Health Organization Collaborating Centre and a teaching hospital fully affiliated with the University of Toronto.

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For more information please contact: Michael Torres, Media Relations Coordinator, CAMH at (416) 595-6015.