Youth, Drugs and Alcohol Public Information Forum February 2004

Information Forum to Help Parents Manage the Risks 

For immediate release: February 11, 2004 (London, Ontario) - London, Ontario has been chosen by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) as the first city to host the Pamela Fralick Community Information Forum on Addiction entitled Youth, Drugs and Alcohol: Helping Parents Manage the Risks. The forum will be moderated by Kathy Wallis, Health Specialist for CFPL TV London, and will take place on Wednesday, February 18th at the Best Western Lamplighter Inn and Conference Centre.

CAMH has partnered with two local organizations Addiction Services of Thames Valley and the Middlesex-London Health Unit. "We know that 'just saying no' to drugs or alcohol has not worked in discouraging youth from getting involved with drugs. Science has helped us understand the range of factors that lead teens to substance use, as well as understanding what can be done to prevent or intervene in a way that is both effective and appropriate to the youth's stage of development. This forum will help share some of that knowledge with the community, " says Dr. Paul Garfinkel, President and CEO of CAMH who will also be attending the inaugural event. "Each year, the forum will take place in a different community in Ontario as part of CAMH's provincial role in sharing emerging knowledge. We're proud to hold the first forum in London."

The Pamela Fralick Community Information Forum on Addiction is part of CAMH's broader public education efforts aimed at increasing public understanding of addiction and mental health issues and helping Ontarians to make informed decisions about their health care. Youth, Drugs and Alcohol: Helping Parents Manage the Risks will address the issue of how to keep teens safe while allowing them to explore their newfound independence. It will examine the landscape of substance use in Canada including the proposed legislation to decriminalize marijuana, and help participants talk (and listen) to their children by offering expert advice and resources on managing the risks of substance abuse. 

Keynote speaker at the forum will be local area resident, David Wolfe, Ph.D, who is the RBC Investments Chair in Children's Mental Health and Developmental Psychopathology at CAMH and Academic Director of the Centre for Research on Violence Against Women and Children at the University of Western Ontario. Stephen Meredith, a Project Consultant at CAMH and Joanne Brown of Parent Action on Drugs will also be part of the panel. This new annual community forum on addiction is a tribute to the hard work, dedication and contributions of Pamela Fralick during her years as chair of CAMH's Board of Trustees. 

The forum is free admission to all and will take place on Wednesday, February 18, from 7-9 p.m. at the Best Western Lamplighter Inn and Conference Centre, 591 Wellington Road South in London. To reserve a seat or for further information about the forum the public should call CAMH at {519} 433-3171 ext. 8106. 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 further information or to set up an interview with Dr. David Wolfe please contact: Sylvia Hagopian, Media Relations Coordinator CAMH, at (416) 595-6015.

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