Session 3: How primary care can address the growing mental health crisis in BC

The future of primary care in BC is a 5-part webinar series. Find out more and join the next session at https://bcpolicy.ca/primary-care This session explores what it means to respond to the mental health crisis through primary care, rather than treating mental health as an “add-on” or separate system. We connect mental health to the social determinants of health and consider what primary care teams need—skills development, staffing models and connections to community services—to address both immediate distress and underlying factors. This approach is key to how mental health supports can strengthen chronic disease management as depression, anxiety, pain and isolation often shape a person’s ability to manage long-term conditions. Finally, we will discuss what it takes to embed that support into the daily practice of primary care and community-based services. PANELISTS: Kim MacKenzie, Senior Director of Policy and Systems Transformation, Canadian Mental Health Association – BC Division Stephany Berinstein, Director of Recovery and Integration, Canadian Mental Health Association – BC Division Julie Zimmerman, Provincial Director, Primary Care and Virtual Services, Foundry Dawn Creach, Principal Consultant and Chief Executive Officer, Creach Consulting Group