As a result of their deliberations committees may make recommendations which they include in their reports for the consideration of the House of Commons or the Government. Recommendations related to this study are listed below.

Recommendation 1—Data Collection

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, support improvements in national mental health-related data collection, including data on:

• children and youth’s health, including mental health;
• mental health experiences by region, across all the provinces and territories;
• mental health experiences disaggregated by family income;
• immigrant and refugee individuals’ mental health, disaggregated by gender;
• the mental health of women and girls living with disabilities;
• Black and racialized individuals’ mental health, disaggregated by gender;
• mental health for youth at the post-secondary level; and
• programs, services and service providers, including mental health services, for children and youth in Canada.

Recommendation 2—Mental Health Research

That the Government of Canada support studies that consider Gender-Based Analysis Plus by academics, parliamentary committees or community organizations on specific aspects of mental health in Canada, such as on:

• systemic barriers and challenges facing youth who are at-risk of homelessness;
• the mental health of Indigenous women, girls and Two-Spirit people;
• prescription drug dependence and cessation supports; and
• anti-oppressive approaches to supporting mental health.

Recommendation 3—Perinatal Mental Health Standards of Care

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, and with the Standards Council of Canada, establish, fund and monitor the implementation of national standards for the prevention and treatment of perinatal mental health illness and integrate into these standards, universal screening for perinatal mental health illness, the development and implementation of a stepped care approach to perinatal mental health treatment and training on these established approaches for care providers.

Recommendation 4—Engaging Young Women, Youth and Girls

That the Government of Canada recognize young women, youth and girls as experts in their own experiences, and meaningfully engage and consult these young women, youth and girls about their mental health needs.

Recommendation 5—Prevention

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, invest in a combined early intervention and prevention approach to mental health services and supports for children, youth and adults, including stepped care model approaches and prevention for substance use and addiction and prevention of all forms of violence such as sexual violence and child abuse.

Recommendation 6—Online Harms Awareness and Legislation

That the Government of Canada launch an awareness campaign about online harms, including sexual exploitation, harassment and cyberbullying to help young women, girls and gender-diverse people in Canada understand online harms, their rights to say no, their boundaries and the importance of seeking help when they experience this behaviour online.

Recommendation 7—Online Harms Awareness and Legislation

That the Government of Canada introduce legislation protecting individuals using social media platforms from cyberbullying and online sexual exploitation.

Recommendation 8—Increased Resources for Health Care Practitioners

That the Government of Canada, with the goal of reducing burnout and supporting health care service providers and practitioners including in developing self-regulation skills, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, ensure that individuals working in frontline health services, including mental health and eating disorder services, as well as other health practitioners, receive increased support through additional human and financial resources.

Recommendation 9—Poverty Reduction

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, increase funding through relevant departments for poverty reduction strategies including supporting low-barrier income support programs and food security initiatives.

Recommendation 10—Meeting the Needs of Diverse Groups of Young Women and Girls

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, provide funding to ensure that mental health care supports and services are culturally appropriate, offered in various languages, including Indigenous languages, and tailored to properly meet the needs of specific populations, including racialized women and girls, Indigenous women, girls and Two-Spirit individuals, young women and girls with diverse sexual and/or gender identities, and young women and girls with disabilities.

Recommendation 11—Implementing the Calls to Action

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, continue fully implementing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action, particularly number 21, 22, 23, 24, related to training in the medical system and the representation of Indigenous peoples among medical practitioners, including the meaningful realization of Call to Action 41 and the Calls for Justice from the final report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, established in response to Call to Action.

Recommendation 12—Access to Housing

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, invest in affordable housing, including complex care housing with an integrated continuum of care and support services, to expand access and availability of safe and affordable housing that meets the needs of diverse populations, specifically Indigenous peoples, youth, immigrants and refugees, Two-Spirit, lesbian, gay bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex people and individuals with diverse sexual and/or gender identities, people with mental health illnesses and individuals who are experiencing domestic and intimate partner violence.

Recommendation 13—Transitional Community Services

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, provide funding to community organizations providing transitional services for individuals who are discharged from addictions and mental health-related hospital programs, youth who are aging out of the foster care system, individuals who are leaving emergency and violence against women shelters.

Recommendation 14—Access to Virtual Mental Health Care

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, and other stakeholders to enhance digital infrastructure and improve virtual mental health care systems to provide better access where feasible.

Recommendation 15—Education of Professionals

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, support the provision of education and training for primary care providers, medical practitioners, teachers and frontline community service providers including social workers about:

• mental health crisis intervention and de-escalation;
• self-regulation and empathy;
• the intersectionality of mental health;
• the harms of colonialization and the child welfare system in Canada;
• mental health first aid and mental health literacy; and
• trauma-informed service provision.

Recommendation 16—Education in Schools

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, encourage the integration of mental health-related content into school curricula, as well as into training for teachers, including on:

• mental health first aid and mental health literacy;
• self-regulation and empathy;
• recognizing and reporting abuse;
• comprehensive sex education that encompasses information on healthy relationships, gender-based violence, consent and intimate partner and sexual violence; and
• safe technology use and online practices.

Recommendation 17—Funding to Organizations

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, accelerate the delivery of increased and sustained funding to existing and new organizations and service providers across Canada that deliver trauma-informed mental health-related programs and services, such as:

• peer supports;
• eating disorder recovery programs;
• supports for school-aged children, located in schools;
• targeted supports for specific groups such as youth, Indigenous populations, Black and racialized young women and girls, Two-Spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex people and individuals with sexually and gender-diverse identities;
• supports in the child and youth sector;
• supports for mental health literacy and emotional regulation and empathy training for families, parents and children and youth;
• supports on university and college campuses;
• sexual assault and violence survivor supports;
• supports in rural and remote communities, including clinical and virtual care; and
• culturally sensitive supports for immigrant, refugee and newcomer women and girls.

Recommendation 18—Canada Health Transfer

That the Government of Canada, respecting the jurisdiction of, and in consultation and collaboration with, municipalities, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples, consider options to integrate mental health into Canada’s health care system and increase specific mental health funding to the provinces and territories, either through increased allocations under the Canada Health Transfer or by creating a Canada mental health transfer.