Community Approach to Mental Health Sunday October 18 th, 2015 at the ISNA Islamic Centre of Canada Program: 2:00-2:10 pm Introduction of Speakers Dr. Syed Imtiaz Ahmad, Moderator, ISNA Canada President 2:10-2:30 pm Green Zone Living is Peaceful Living: Focus on Mental Health Education Dr. Khalid Sohail MBBS FRCP (Canada) 2:30-2:50 pm Mental Health Challenges Faced by Muslims in North America: Lessons Learned from our Brothers and Sisters Dr. Saadia Ahmad, Ph. D., C. Psych. 2:50-3:10 pm Accessing Valuable Services for Your Children Rashaad Vahed, Vice-President, Children s Mental Health Assistant Professor (Status) Faculty of Social Work (Toronto) 3:10-3:30 pm Major Psychiatric Conditions and their medical treatments Dr. Arif Syed, Psychiatrist 3:30-3:50 pm Mental Health Concerns and Mental Health Service Access Barriers Dr. Farah Islam, Ph.D. 3:50-4:10 pm Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT): Practical Solutions to Day-to-Day Problems Shahnaz Ahmed, MSW, RSW (Clinical Social Worker) 4:10-4:30 pm Islamic Perspectives on Community Mental Health Issues and Remedies Sh. Abdalla Idris Ali, ISNA Canada Executive Director 4:30-5:00 pm Salatul 'Asr 5:00-5:30 pm Follow-up Discussion, Questions, Answers 5:30 6:30 pm 1-on-1 access to psychologists, psychiatrists, and counsellors 1 of 6
Session Descriptions: 2:10-2:30 pm Green Zone Living is Peaceful Living: Focus on Mental Health Education Dr. Khalid Sohail MBBS FRCP (Canada) Dr. Sohail s presentation will be based on his book Green Zone Living: 7 Steps to a Healthy, Happy and Peaceful Lifestyle, that he co-authored with Bette Davis RN BN MN. The Green Zone Philosophy is based on the concept that, like traffic lights, we all live in three emotional zones: Green, Yellow and Red. When we are relaxed and enjoying life we are in our Green Zone. When we are a little upset and frustrated, we are in our Yellow Zone, and when we get angry and lose control we are in our Red Zone. Green Zone Living helps us spend more time in our peaceful Green Zone and create Green Zone relationships so that we can live a healthy, happy and peaceful Green Zone Lifestyle. To read more about Green Zone Books and Green Zone Philosophy you can visit the following websites: www.drsohail.com www.greenzoneliving.ca 2:30-2:50 pm Mental Health Challenges Faced by Muslims in North America: Lessons Learned From our Brothers and Sisters Dr. Saadia Ahmad, Ph. D., C. Psych. Maintaining mental health involves fostering basic psychological needs including sustaining physical health, enjoying a sense of safety, participating as a member of family and community, and developing a sense of unique value in one s life. These needs must develop within an ecological context including family unit, school and community, and within a greater belief system of the society in which we are raised. Despite our attempts to foster our mental health needs and those of our loved ones, some of us are naïve to the inherent necessary building blocks required for sustaining mental health within our unique experience living as Muslims in North America. Without insight and education from lessons learned, individuals at-risk for serious mental illness may suffer from severe and tragic challenges as they struggle to meet their needs within their unique ecology. This brief presentation will review basic psychological needs and how these needs can be met within our ecology. Clinical examples of Muslims living in North America who have faced severe and tragic mental health challenges will be discussed in an attempt to learn from the past and build psychological resilience. 2 of 6
2:50-3:10 pm Accessing Valuable Services for Your Children Rashaad Vahed, Vice-President, Children s Mental Health Assistant Professor (Status) Faculty of Social Work (Toronto) Most parents will at some point ask questions about their children, such as: Is my child s language skills developing well enough for their age? When should I be worried about their expression of emotions or mood shifts? How can I support their social development with friends and family? What can I do when my child gets stuck in problem behaviours or ways of thinking? These are important and normal questions that parents ask. Speaking from experiences gained from several leading children s mental health agencies, Rashaad will talk about resources and services that can be used if you have questions like these. Currently, Rashaad has the position of Vice-President of Clinical Services at the Leading Children s Mental Health Centre for the Halton Region. 3:10-3:30 pm Major Psychiatric Conditions and their medical treatments Dr. Arif Syed, Psychiatrist Psychiatric conditions have been present for centuries, but their awareness has recently grown due to many prevalent conditions. This talk will touch on the definitions of the major diagnoseable illnesses in Psychiatry including: Major Depression, Bipolar Disorder, Schizophrenia, and various Anxiety disorders. Also a brief exposure will be offered to the medicine treatments available for these. Further discussion may also include what talk therapies are available for these conditions. 3:30-3:50 pm Mental Health Concerns and Mental Health Service Access Barriers Dr. Farah Islam, Ph.D. Young Muslims in Canada today struggle with mental health concerns and face barriers when trying to seek mental health care. Youth living in Peel Region were interviewed to understand the particular challenges faced by Muslim youth in our neighborhood. Young Muslims cited many mental health stressors, from intergenerational and cultural conflict to academic pressure to relationship and financial stress, and family difficulties. These stressors can contribute to mental health challenges, such as depression, anxiety, drug use with marijuana, alcohol, and cigarette use. 3 of 6
Youth were able to identify about a third (36%) of the mental health resources presented to them and did not feel well-informed about mental health resources available in their neighborhood. They offered recommendations for parents, the education system, the Muslim community, and the mental health system. Institutions and bodies at all levels of society have a role to play in ensuring the mental health of Muslim youth. This brief presentation will provide youth voices and highlight key issues and recommendations as outlined by Muslim youth in Peel Region. Session: 3:50-4:10 pm Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT): Practical Solutions to Day-to-Day Problems Shahnaz Ahmed, MSW, RSW (Clinical Social Worker) Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, also known as CBT, is a therapeutic approach that uses a combination of cognitive and behavioural therapy. CBT addresses practical self-help strategies which are based on the assumption that the way people behave is grounded in the way people think. CBT provides a flexible set of clinical tools which include cognitive restructuring, social skills training, relaxation training, problem- solving skills, and self-help manuals. This presentation will provide a general overview of the practical application of cognitive and behavioural strategies. It will emphasize the application of the problem- solving strategies shown to be effective for a wide range of personal, emotional, and family issues. Research has shown that CBT is one of the most effective treatment approaches for managing various psychiatric, psychological, and relationship issues. The good news is that although it is best done with a trained CBT counsellor, a person can apply CBT principles at home to manage his/her own issues. This presentation will help the audience understand the basic principles and strategies of this widely used counselling approach aimed to motivate them to identify problems (if they have any) and find solutions. Speaker Information: 1) Dr. Khalid Sohail MBBS FRCP (Canada) Dr. Khalid Sohail graduated from Khyber Medical College Peshawar Pakistan in 1974. He studied at Memorial University Newfoundland and received his FRCP (C) in psychiatry in 1982. After working in different general and psychiatric hospitals from 1982 to 1994, he started his own Creative Psychotherapy Clinic in Whitby, Ontario in 1995. It is in this clinic that he developed Green Zone Living, a self-help program to educate his patients and their families about mental 4 of 6
health. With the help of his colleagues and co-therapists, Anne Hendersen and Bette Davis, he wrote a series of Green Zone Books. 2) Dr. Saadia Ahmad, Ph.D., C. Psych. Dr. Saadia A. Ahmad is a Clinical Neuropsychologist registered for areas of practice in assessment, intervention, consultation, research and teaching for Children, Adults, Adolescents, Families, and Organizations. In addition to clinic offices in Windsor, Oakville, and Toronto, Dr. Ahmad currently holds a full-time position as Manager of Outpatient Mental Health Programs for Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare (HDGH) in Windsor, Ontario. Prior to this position, for approximately 10 years, she was chief Clinical Neuropsychologist at HDGH, responsible for overseeing all psychological and neuropsychological services in the HDGH system which housed the regional inpatient acute-care mental health services in addition to having been designated a lead trauma hospital housing neurology and neurosurgery. Dr. Ahmad is also a faculty member of the University of Western Ontario s Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry with an active lecture schedule to the Schulich medical student curriculum, a Research Scientist with the Ozad Institute, and has taught over 20 courses within the Department of Psychology at the University of Windsor in recent years. She has a number of publications in peer-review, professional journals, and has presented at a number of professional meetings and conferences. 3) Rashaad Vahed, Vice-President, Children s Mental Health Rashaad Vahed has worked in the field of adult and children s mental health for the past 20 years. Rashaad s approach to families values the importance of parents/grandparents/guardians in the lives of our children, while being aware of the intense pressures and challenges that our youth experience both in and outside of our homes. Rashaad has held numerous leadership positions and is especially knowledgeable about services that are available for families who have children from birth to early adulthood. 4) Dr. Arif Syed, Psychiatrist Dr. Arif Syed was born in Edmonton, Alberta where he completed, by the grace of Allah, his BSc. (Hons.) Biochemistry, as well as his MD. He completed his Psychiatry residency training at the University of Western Ontario, Alhamdulillah, after which he started to work as the main Psychiatrist for the University of Waterloo students and staff for almost 4 years. He has been blessed to work in the GTA in private practice since 2008 with his wife and 6 kids. 5) Dr. Farah Islam, Ph.D. Farah Islam, Ph.D., completed her postdoctoral fellowship in the Social Aetiology of Mental Illness (SAMI) program at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health at the University of Toronto and completed her Ph.D. at York University. She explores mental health and service 5 of 6
access in Canada's racialized and immigrant populations, employing both quantitative epidemiology and mixed methods research. Farah orients her research and community work around breaking down the barriers of mental health stigma. 6) Shahnaz Ahmed, MSW, RSW (Clinical Social Worker) Shahnaz Ahmed is a Registered Masters Social Worker (MSW. RSW) in the Province of Ontario. She is also an active member of the Ontario Association of Social Workers (OASW). She earned her Masters Degree in Psychology from the University of Dhaka and worked in Dhaka, Bangladesh as a counselor in a Domestic Violence Shelter of the Ministry of Children and Women Affairs for five years. She further earned her second Masters Degree from Hunter, the City University of New York, and was registered as a Licensed Masters Social Worker (LMSW) through the College of Social Work at the State of New York, USA. Mrs. Ahmed worked as a Psychiatric Social Worker at a renowned mental health outpatient clinic, the Child Center of New York, for ten years. She also worked in other mental health and substance abuse programs within the United States and Canada, including South Asian Council of Social Services (SACSS), The Family Enhancement Centre (TFEC), MIAG the Centre for Diverse Women & Families, Muslim Family & Child Services of Ontario (MFCSO) and the Associated Youth Services of Peel (AYSP). Throughout her career, Mrs. Ahmed continued to receive specialized trainings on different counselling approaches including CBT, DBT, Solution Focused Therapy, Narrative Therapy, and Motivational Interviewing. At present, Mrs. Ahmed is working as a full time Walk-in/ Brief Counsellor at the Associated Youth Services of Peel (AYSP) and also works as a part-time Family Counsellor at the ISNA Canada Head Office. ISNA Canada Mental Health Registry: This new ISNA Canada initiative is aimed to: Provide a resource serving professional experts and general public Gather and disseminate information on best practices, mentorship and related areas Promote the best for the most Create public confidence and integrity of registry by Screening and due diligence in identifying professionals Assist the community in getting access to qualified professionals 6 of 6