Île-à-la-Crosse councillor hopeful for improved mental health support in northern communities
The recent Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA) convention in Regina helped a village councillor from Île-à-la-Crosse feel a bit more optimistic about the mental health crisis in the North.
Gerald Roy, who also serves as deputy mayor in the community, posted a question during the open-forum ‘bear-pit’ sessions at the meeting. This is where a dialogue took place with cabinet ministers, including Premier-elect Scott Moe, who responded to inquiries from the floor, answering in 60-second bits.
“We have high rates of suicide, with young people taking their lives on an almost daily basis…we need some assistance in the North,” Roy said when he approached the mic. “We’re doing our part, we are having discussions, we want to come up with a solution but we need your help, including the federal government’s. So please, give me some answers today that I can take to my fellow municipal constituents.”
Roy said it’s been an ongoing dialogue between northern municipal and indigenous leaders. He said there is a strong need for more direct mental health and addictions services in the northern portion of the province, with the addition of treatment centres and health professionals.