| The
Association of Psychologists of Nova Scotia is a voluntary professional
organization established in 1965 to represent psychology in Nova
Scotia. APNS is the only provincial association devoted to representing
the needs of psychology professionals in the province. APNS promotes
psychology as a profession, as a science, and as a means of promoting
human welfare.
Time
and Money Worries Give Way to Holiday Stress
APNS
Offers Strategies to Curb Stress during Holidays
Halifax — With
pleasant thoughts of food, family and decoration, the holidays can
be a source of joy for many people. For others, this time of year
can be associated with anxiety and stress. In fact, the American
Psychological Association's (APA) Stress in America survey
finds that many report money as a significant source of stress in
their lives and also report lack of time as a reason they're not
doing more to manage their stress. During the holiday season, however,
money concerns can be elevated and personal time can be tight, which
may add to people's stress says the APA.
Dean Perry, R.Psych., APNS
Public Education Coordinator says: "While this survey included
only American participants, the similar culture between the U.S.
and Canada would suggest that the stressors and the subsequent effects
are also the same. With the majority of Canada's population living
near the U.S. border, and affected strongly by the U.S. economy,
it is important for Canadians to pay attention to the growing stress
of their American neighbours. For example, 2008 Statistics Canada
survey reported that 22.3% of Canadians aged 15 or older reported
that most days were extremely or quite a bit stressful.”
http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/82-625-x/2010001/article/11108-eng.htm
“The holidays can be a stressful
time for everyone, but there are some steps you can take to help
manage your stress,” says Mr. Perry . “You can begin by developing
a simple approach that helps you set realistic goals. Then, be sure
to make time for relaxation and enjoy low-key celebrations with
good friends and family.”
APNS and APA suggest the
following strategies to help manage your holiday stress:
Set realistic expectations. No holiday celebration
is perfect; view inevitable missteps as opportunities to demonstrate
flexibility and resilience. Create a realistic budget and remind
your children that the holidays aren't about expensive gifts.
Take time for yourself. Taking care of yourself
helps you to take better care of others in your life. Go for a long
walk, read something that interests you or listen to your favorite
music. By slowing down you may find more energy to accomplish your
holiday goals.
Volunteer. Many charitable organizations face new
challenges as a result of the ongoing economic downturn. Find a
local charity, such as a soup kitchen or a shelter, where you and
your family can volunteer together throughout the year. Helping
others can put hardships in perspective and build stronger family
relationships.
Remember what's important. Commercialism can overshadow
the true sentiment of the holiday season. When your holiday expense
list is running longer than your monthly budget, scale back. Remind
yourself that family, friends and the relationships in your life
are what matter most.
Seek support. Talk about stress related to the
holidays with your friends and family. Getting things out in the
open can help you navigate your feelings and work toward a solution.
If you continue to feel overwhelmed, consider talking with a professional
such as a psychologist to help you develop coping strategies and
better manage your stress. A psychologist has the skills and professional
training to help people learn to manage stress and cope more effectively
with life's problems.
For additional information
on stress and lifestyle and behavior, visit www.apahelpcenter.org
, read the blog www.yourmindyourbody.org and follow
@apahelpcenter on Twitter.
Find
out more about APNS's new Early Career Psychology committee.
The
Nova Scotia Mental Health and Addictions Strategy consultations
Tackling
Mental Health Issues Results in Improved Physical Health
Nova
Scotia Personal Health Information Act (PHIA)
APNS
Meeting and Presentation to the Mental Health Strategy Advisory
Committee
On March
17th the APNS Executive met with the Mental Health Strategy team
to discuss implications for psychologists and to present their recommendations
for issues that must be addressed by the Strategy. Download the
document here.
The Mental
Health Strategy Advisory Committee will be holding service provider
consultations throughout April. These consultation sessions are
happening across the province and are open to mental health and
addictions service providers. The service provider consultations
are intended to provide a forum for individuals who provide services
to mental health and/or addictions clients/patients/consumers.
Those attending
will have the opportunity to provide input into the development
of the Strategy, hear what others across Nova Scotia have said,
and build on their points.
Consultations
are now closed. More info soon...
To access
the Online Consultation, or more information regarding the development
of the Mental Health and Addictions Strategy, please visit:
www.nshrf.ca/mentalhealthandaddictionsstrategy
In addition
to the service provider consultations, the Advisory Committee will
be holding public consultations across the province. See the above
website for more informaiton.
Tackling
Mental Health Issues Results in Improved Physical Health
Halifax
NS: —
It's
mid-February, mid-winter and mid-flu season in Nova Scotia with
no holidays in sight. Some are lucky enough to go south and others
are hoping the Canada Winter Games will raise our spirits, but many
are badly in need of a few “mental health days.” That is one reason
for designating February as Psychology Month. It's a time to remember
that mental health has a huge effect on physical wellness. Stress
and depression are just two of the issues that may be dragging down
physical health. If so, it may be time to talk to a psychologist.
“Amid
all the talk of cutbacks for education and health, it is a positive
sign that government, corporations and the public are beginning
to realize that integrating mental health strategies into primary
healthcare can improve the health of Nova Scotians,” says Dean Perry,
Public Education Coordinator for the Association of Psychologists
of Nova Scotia. “When psychologists work together as a team with
physicians, nurses and other professionals, not only can it point
to the role that psychological factors play in physical illness,
but can identify the first signs of mental health issues.”
Taking
the team approach can also signify a cost saving to the health care
system. It eases the pressure on family physicians, making more
room in their schedules to see more patients, thus providing access
to more people. Studies have found that patients decrease their
use of medical and hospital services when provided with psychological
services.
Research
suggests that the average savings to the health care system attributable
to the addition of outpatient psychotherapy services is about 20%,
that is, every $1 spent on psychological services, yields a savings
of $5 in medical costs. This figure does not include the gains to
the patient's quality of life or to employers and the economy as
a result of reduced absenteeism, lowered frequency of workplace
accidents or reduction in disability payouts (Chiles et al.,
1999) . Furthermore, a review of 35 studies on psychotherapy
and its cost implications showed that, in 90% of published studies,
the therapy cost was more than offset by other system savings (Gabbard
et al. 1997).
A
psychologist has the skills and professional training to help people
learn to manage stress, alleviate depression and cope more effectively
with life problems, using techniques based on best practice research
clinical skill and experience. Psychologists take into account an
individual's unique values, goals and circumstances.
Psychologists
can play a key role in promoting and maintaining the health of Nova
Scotians. For more information on how a psychologist can help, contact
the Association of Psychologists of Nova Scotia. www.apns.ca
Nova
Scotia Personal Health Information Act (PHIA)
*Update:
Please
note that APNS reps are meeting with provincial authorities regarding
roll-out and regulations surrounding the PHIA to attempt to address
concerns of the profession.
...............................
APNS
hosted the Personal Health Information Act (PHIA) Forum
on Nov 18th. APNS urged its members to attend as we have concerns
that PHIA will impact our clients in profound ways. Based on the
information we have collected, APNS believes that PHIA may lower
the minimum standard of consent for the sharing of health records
across a wide domain of health providers and open the door to numerous
potential negative implications for our clients and the practice
of psychology.
APNS' submission (as well
as others) to the Law Amendments Committee on the Act and
status is available here.
Next to "Law Amendments Committee", click on "Print
Submissions". Click on "download all
written submissions for this bill". Within that, scroll
down till you come to the "change sheet" which lists all
the changes that were accepted by the Law Amendments Committee.
Read
the most recent available version of the Act here
APNS
would welcome your input on PHIA as it is being implemented. If
you wish to express your opinion or concern, provide information,
or relate a personal experience about PHIA please email us at apns@apns.ca.
Please
see a summary of the Fourm below. To allow those who could not attend
a way of viewing the Forum proceedings, please follow this link.
****************
Thanks
to all who attended or logged-in to the Personal Health Information
Act (PHIA) Forum on November 18, 2010. The event had a good turnout
and achieved APNS' goal to raise awareness of PHIA as well as our
concerns about how this may affect client/patient confidentiality.
Approximately 70 individuals attended the forum, either in person
or remotely by logging-in online. Five panellists presented on PHIA
and the forum was moderated by psychologist, Dr. Richard MacGillivray.
Suellen
Murray, Project Manager, Health Information Legislation Project,
N.S. Dept. of Health provided background information on
the development of PHIA and an Electronic Health Record and explained
a bit about the legal context. Similar legislation has been enacted
in other provinces.
Elizabeth
Iwaskow, NS SHARE/EHR Portfolio Manager, Senior Project Manager
e-Health, N.S. Dept. of Health , spoke
about the development and workings of SHARE, an electronic data
base for health information. She explained that there will be different
levels of access for different types of health care providers.
Ms. Iwaskow and Ms. Murray
discussed the concept of a “lock box,” a measure of protection that
would allow patients/clients to prevent certain individuals from
accessing their health information. However, they conceded that
this may be difficult to enact in practice. According to Ms. Murray,
“custodians” of health records can make decisions about the use
and dissemination of information. Unfortunately however, Psychologists
working in the public sector and covered by PHIA will not be considered
“custodians” and therefore will not have the ability to make such
decisions.
David
Fraser, partner, McInnes Cooper, encouraged Psychologists
to maintain high levels of confidentiality. He noted that Psychologists
could apply higher standards of confidentiality than called for
by this legislation.
Psychologist
Dr. Myles Genest, Genest Psychological Services Inc. summarized
pertinent sections of the Canadian Code of Ethics for Psychologists
and addressed the conflict between these and the PHIA.
Dr.
John Service, Director of the Practice Directorate, Canadian Psychological
Association, reported on the national agenda for Psychology
and reframed this as an opportunity for positive change within the
discipline.
Subsequent
to the Forum, the APNS Executive discussed strategies as to how
APNS might proceed to monitor PHIA as it is implemented and to continue
to make its concerns felt. PHIA has passed 2nd reading in the Legislature
and we expect it will be enacted soon. The Law Amendments Committee
has now met to discuss PHIA and APNS took advantage of this opportunity
to submit a written brief of our concerns.
APNS
also plans to take the following actions:
Post the
link to the archived PHIA Forum for those who were unable to attend;
Gather information
from psychology regulatory bodies and associations in other provinces
to determine how they have handled the implementation of similar
legislation in their jurisdictions;
Continue
to follow-up with media and the Department of Health;
Create a
place on our website with information on PHIA, as well as a method
for collecting feedback.
last
updated June7, 2011
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