Community group encouraged by Manitoba funding boost for mindfulness-based therapy

A community-based organization in Winnipeg's northwest is praising additional investments in a mindfulness-based therapy that is being expanded to reach more people, amid increased need for mental health services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Manitoba is committing $700,000 fora mindfulness-based cognitive behaviouraltherapyhub, the province announced Wednesday. The funding will allow the centre to extend access onlineand expand services.

"We've seen the need for these kind of services increase over the course of the pandemic," saidRebecca Blaikie, executive director ofNorwest Co-op Community Health, whichhas been offering mindfulness-based cognitive behaviouraltherapy therapy for several years.

"We've seen the positive impact that access to this therapy has on the quality of life of our community members. We're excited to see what this expanded access will mean for our community."

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, also known as CBTm, incorporates principles of mindfulness to help participants build skills to better cope with stressful life situations, the province says.

It has been shown to reduce stress, improve sleep, develop emotional regulation techniques and help manage other mental health challenges,Manitoba's mental health minister said Wednesday.

Speaking at a news conference, Sarah Guillemard said the additional funding will help reduce barriers to the services. It will help hospital and community-based sites develop access to virtual facilitator-led CBTm classesor self-directed web-based courses, she said.

Manitobainvested $300,000 last year in the cognitive therapy hub amid increased need, though the program was developed well before the pandemic, said Guillemard.

The hope is to train 70 to 100 additional mindfulness-based cognitive therapy facilitators and recruit between 700 and1,000 Manitobans to utilize the service over the next year, said the medical lead of mental health and addiction with Shared Health, which co-ordinates health-care services in Manitoba.

Dr. Jitender Sareen said cognitive behavioural therapy is often considered the "gold-standard" treatment for a variety of issues.CBT and mindfulness-based therapies help practitioners become more resilient in the face of stressful life events, including people who do not live with mental illness, he added.

"It is the most researched and well-recognized of all psychotherapies and has been shown to be effective in the treatment in all mental disorders and substance use conditions," Sareen said at the Wednesdaynews conference.

The five-week program provides seven-and-a-half hours of CBTm therapy and was first developed in 2017.

During its first year, the program targeted adults. Movingforward, it will be expanded to youth 14 to 17.

Shay-Lee Bolton,an assistant professor in the departments of psychiatry and community health sciences at the University of Manitoba, called the funding a "critical investment" in Manitobans' mental health.

"The CBTm hub will create the foundation for cutting edge mental health research in this province," said Bolton.

Bolton says the team has already scientifically proven CBTm is effective at reducing anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, including in those who are already managing the challenges of everyday life well.

That work was done before the pandemic. Bolton suggested varying groups might benefit differentlyfrom the updated virtual offerings, which is why it will be important to track effectiveness across different segments of the population and make adjustments accordingly.

The program has also received national and provincial funding for tailored programs for physicians, public safety personnel and peripartumwomen, said Bolton. Itmay also be applied for nurses, seniors, youth andIndigenous populations.

Bolton said the new funding will also support French translation of the services.

More than 50 hospitals and community-based programs have received mindfulness-based cognitive therapytraining and programming over the past five years, Guillemard said.

"[It] aims to build resilience, improve mental health wellness and improve access to mental health services," she said.

Have you utilizedmindfulness-based cognitive behavioural therapy in Manitoba? Email bryce.hoye@cbc.ca.