Mothers' Mental Health Toolkit Website Launched

A website has been launched to make The Mothers’ Mental Health Toolkit, a product of a partnership between the IWK Reproductive Mental Health Service and Family Resource Centres, available for download online. This workbook style resource and learning tools were developed by Coleen Flynn MSW and Joanne MacDonald MD to increase community service provider maternal mental health knowledge and confidence with the goal to develop strong children and healthy communities. This collection of resources is intended to support those who work with vulnerable mothers and families. The materials on this website were created with project funding from PHAC in collaboration with representatives from the CAPC and CPNP who work in Family Resource Programs throughout Canada. The project aimed to enhance mental health literacy for support providers, provide a guide for the promotion of mental wellness for mothers and promote practices that build resiliency and a strong network of community supports.

The Toolkit was not developed for self-help use by mothers. It isn’t comprehensive mental illness education or a treatment manual and is not intended as a replacement for needed mental health assessment or service. However, community support providers can be the first point of contact for a mother struggling with a mental health problem and we hoped to equip them with an approach and some tools specific to their roles in supporting parenting generally at the neighborhood level.

Resources are available in English and French. You can also use the EN FR toggles in the upper right hand corner of your screen to switch from the English to French pages. There are fewer French resources due to limitations of time and funding.

You can access Page 2 by clicking on “Additional Resources for Trainers” at the bottom of Page 1. All videos are scheduled to be posted by early summer.

Residual stock of the physical Toolkit workbooks rests now with the regional trainers. Please direct others to the pdf versions of the Toolkit on Page 1 of the website.