November 2020
“There is no question in my mind that we need to a national strategy to support perinatal mental health for new families, much like we need a worldwide strategy to combat negative repercussions from the pandemic and the public health measures put in place to control the pandemic. But together, I have complete confidence we can do it. It’s disappointing that the House of Commons didn’t take up the call to develop and implement a national strategy for perinatal mental health. But I belong to a group called the Canadian Perinatal Mental Health Collaborative and we are not going to let this set back stop us. We, and our formidable founders, Jaime Charlebois and Patricia Tomasi, are determined to continue to advocate for and promote the health of new families in Canada.”
Thanks goes out to U of C psychology associate professor Lianne Tomfohr-Madsen and CPMHC National Committee member for continuing to spread our message 
“The new study underlines the need for Canada to adopt a national strategy for perinatal mental health to support women in the period before and after they give birth, Tomfohr-Madsen said. Much like existing strategies in Great Britain or Australia, she says it would introduce universal mental health screening for pregnant women and more timely access to treatment.”
“The time is now for the development of a national perinatal and family mental health strategy.”
Family mental health crisis: Parental depression, anxiety during COVID-19 will affect kids too
For most parents, to say the the COVID-19 pandemic has been stressful would be a dramatic understatement. The combination of financial pressure, loss of child care and health concerns is exceedingly challenging for families. Mental health problems are expected to rise dramatically as a secondary effect of COVID-19 and the measures that have been put in place to contain it.
