This World Mental Health Day we need to confront a troubling reality: the mental health landscape is shifting in harmful ways in parts of Canada and the United States with the prospect of more coercive measures such as involuntary treatment and the elimination of vital support services.
In Canada, some provinces such as British Columbia and Alberta are considering expanding mandatory treatment programs. These coercive measures would violate rights to liberty and nondiscrimination and infringe on people’s autonomy. At the same time, Ontario is facing the closure of supervised consumption sites—services that offer often life—saving support for people who use drugs. Closing these spaces pushes people further into isolation, increasing the risk of death by overdose and other crises.
In the United States, California and New York have adopted and expanded policies of coercive and involuntary treatment. Cities like New York and San Francisco have expanded involuntary psychiatric care often as part of a flawed response to people living on the streets. Rather than fostering supportive environments or addressing people’s neglected rights to adequate housing and affordable and accessible quality health care, these shifts toward mandatory treatment deepen the stigma around mental health conditions and often worsen health outcomes.
It doesn’t have to be this way. Gerstein Crisis Centre in Toronto offers a powerful example of what compassionate, community-based mental health support can look like. Unlike systems that rely on policing, involuntary hospitalization, or forced treatment, Gerstein Crisis Centre provides individuals in crisis with a voluntary, non-medical space to access support. Its approach is centered on dignity, choice, and respect; values that support systems should aspire to embody. As highlighted in a recent case study by Human Rights Watch and Gerstein Crisis Centre, this model demonstrates that services grounded in human rights are not only possible but essential.
People are far more likely to seek help when they feel safe, respected, and supported; not when they fear coercion or control.
The work of organizations like Gerstein Crisis Centre show us that better solutions exist. Compassionate, community-based services that are consent-based, trauma-informed, and focused on human rights offer a path forward. These models support individuals with the respect they deserve, meet them where they are, and allow for healing on their own terms.
On this World Mental Health Day, let’s commit to protecting and expanding these services, resisting coercive policy shifts, and reaffirming our commitment to the mental health and well-being of all.
