CCSMH Mission and Values

The mission of the CCSMH is to promote the mental health of seniors by connecting people, ideas and resources.

A group of diverse older adults posing for a photograph with arms around each other and smiling while outdoors in an urban park with trees in Fall colours.

Value Statement

Mental illness is not a normal part of aging. All seniors have the right and deserve to receive services and care that promotes their mental health and responds to their mental illness needs.

CCSMH initiatives are based on this belief and also recognize that seniors:

  • Range in age (65 – 100+)
  • Live in a variety of community and institutional settings
  • Reside in all Canadian provinces, territories and within both urban and rural settings
  • Are diverse in terms of their culture, religion, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, ability and sexual orientation
  • May experience lifelong mental illness or acquired mental illness after age 65
  • Require care to both prevent and respond to their mental health and wellness needs
  • May respond to both medical and/or psychosocial models for prevention and care
  • Mental health issues may include a wide array of illness including mood, anxiety, addictions and psychotic disorders, in addition to the emotional, behavioural and cognitive complications of a variety of brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s Disease and Parkinson’s Disease