COVID-19 and the repercussions for mental health in Toronto

Introduction

Multiple sources indicate that the pandemic is producing a mental health crisis in Canada and abroad. Morneau Shepell’s mental health index saw the biggest drop in April that they have ever recorded, with a decline of 12 points out of 100 versus their benchmark. They found that 16% of Canadians experienced a very negative mental health impact owing to the crisis while 80% reported at least some sort of negative mental health impact.

For a brief for Toronto Foundation, we spoke to mental health service providers w/ surging demand: Kids Help Phone (+350% contacts vs pre covid), WoodGreen Community Services's Toronto Senior's Helpline (10x the calls), Gerstein Crisis Centre (3x calls), and Progress Place's Warmline (2x demand). Organizations working on mental health are facing incredibly complex new challenges they are doing amazing work to address.

Click here to see the full brief.

CBC’s metro morning covered the piece here:

The pandemic is amplifying all kinds of different mental health issues. New research out from the Toronto Foundation paints a troubling picture of how many people are struggling -- and how stretched local organizations are in trying to offer support. Jeffrey Sotto is in recovery from an eating disorder and speaks about the challenges he's facing in isolation.

Mental health has declined much more for low-income households than others

Numerous mental health issues are growing rapidly for youth.