Mental Health and Addictions, Creating Possibilities Together

A evening to engage and empower Primary Care Providers in their valiant efforts to improve mental health in Ontario.

This session will include:

1) Understanding the status of Mental Health in Ontario with a focus on the experiences of the Jamat

2) A review of evidence-based standards of quality care for common mental health disorders

3) Introducing the psychiatric consult service available to Primary Care Providers in Ontario through Ontario Shores to support caring for patients with mental health conditions from the comfort of your office

Panelists:

Salim Bhanji

Salim Bhanji is President of the Ismaili Council for Ontario. Under His Highness the Aga Khan's leadership, the Ismaili Council for Ontario is responsible for social governance, administration, guidance and coordination of the activities of the community and its institutions. Approximately 40,000 community members reside in Ontario.

Professionally, Salim is a management consultant providing advisory services to banks and financial institutions in Canada and the US. His areas of specialty are Product Management, Treasury, Risk and Financial Analysis. He also designs and delivers talent development programs focused on best practices and emerging industry trends.

Dr. Nasreen Ramji, MD, CCFP, FCFP

Family Physician, Associate Director Postgraduate Program, St. Michael's Hospital Department of Family and Community Medicine

Dr. Phil Klassen

Dr. Philip Klassen is Vice-President, Medical Affairs, at Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences, and Assistant Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine at the University of Toronto. He is also a practicing forensic psychiatrist, and works in the Traumatic Stress Clinic at Ontario Shores.

Administratively, Dr. Klassen is responsible, in partnership with the Senior Management Team and interprofessional colleagues at Ontario Shores, for quality improvement, utilization management, medical staff evaluation, recruitment and retention, and education. Dr. Klassen is the executive sponsor of the hospital’s implementation of clinical practice guidelines, and quality-based procedures, and was co-chair of the provincial QBP expert and implementation panel for schizophrenia.

Academically, Dr. Klassen has written and presented on clinical and quality-related topics, and topics in forensic psychiatry. He has been awarded for course design, and remains an active teacher at the undergraduate and graduate levels. He has a special interest in global mental health and has led the creation of the first mental health and diversion court in Africa.

Clinically, Dr. Klassen is active in the areas of forensic risk assessment and management, clinical sexology, assessment of fitness for duty, assessment of trauma outcome, and other forensic domains. He has also been an external reviewer for provincial and hospital programs.

Karim Mamdani, MBA, CMA, CPA, BSc

President and CEO, Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences

Dr. Karima Velji, RN, PhD, CHE

Vice President, Clinical Services, Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences