Nova Scotia event builds MSSU awareness and strengthens collaborations
“I think a number of the trainees, people with lived expertise and equity-deserving community members didn’t know about MSSU, and this event created an opportunity for many of them to link in with the research community for the first time.”
DIVERT Participant
Last fall, the Maritime SPOR SUPPORT Unit (MSSU) supported a vital project to enhance mental health services in Nova Scotia, addressing a critical health priority for the province. Nova Scotia’s population has grown substantially and become increasingly more diverse in recent years, heightening concerns among care providers that current digital mental health resources do not meet the needs of a diverse population.
Partnering with the IWK Mental Health and the Pan-Canadian Digital, Inclusive, Virtual, and Equitable Research Training in Mental Health Platform (DIVERT Mental Health), MSSU co-hosted an event to gather feedback on developing more inclusive supports for youth mental health. The event was part of the DIVERT Mental Health engagement series across Canada. This platform, supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, focuses on training in anti-racism, diversity, equity, and inclusion, and how inclusivity and technology can be used to innovate youth mental health care and research.
The 38 participants included policy and health system decision-makers, thought leaders, youth, caregivers, emerging researchers, mental health clinicians, computer science researchers, trainees, and equity advocates. Dr. Lori Wozney, Scientific Lead for Mental Health and Addictions at IWK Health, highlighted the challenge of engaging meaningfully with local partners on priority research and policy intersections.
“We know that in-person knowledge exchange opportunities are crucial, but we often lack the resources to engage intentionally with local partners. This is where MSSU’s expertise was a game-changer for us,” said Wozney. “Their guidance on structuring the event was instrumental. They helped us maximize diverse input and prioritize recommendations effectively, ensuring a wide range of voices and perspectives were heard and considered.”
The recommendations will help inform the training curriculum for service developers and providers offered by the DIVERT Pan-Canadian platform over the next four years. The recommendations are also being incorporated into the strategic planning and communication strategies of IWK Mental Health, which will lead to improved digital mental health care options for diverse populations in the future.
According to Wozney, “The post-event feedback showed that many attendees would not have interacted with each other had we not hosted the event. This speaks volumes about the networking opportunities we created.” A connection was made between the IWK Indigenous Health Consultant and the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Lead at Nova Scotia Health Mental Health and Addictions Program, who met for the first time at the event. Following the event, an academic publication outlining the event’s recommendations was co-authored by 11 individuals on the event steering committee who had not previously worked together and included people with lived experience.
“This diverse representation from across the youth mental health community was unprecedented,” said Wozney. “Many attendees continued conversations and collaborations initiated at the event, further amplifying its impact.” The event’s outcomes have also shaped new major research grant applications to CIHR and Research Nova Scotia, fostering new collaborations. “Aspects of our event structure were even replicated in other knowledge exchange events by DIVERT and IWK,” Wozney added.
Wozney emphasized that MSSU was instrumental in their success: “Through their comprehensive support, MSSU played a crucial role in enabling effective knowledge exchange and fostering significant impacts on health service and research decisions.”