COVID-19 compounds mental health fears in north
Northern Saskatchewan First Nations say the COVID -19 pandemic is underscoring the need for better mental health service in the upper half of the province.
Waterhen First Nation councillor Dustin Ross Fiddler said his community contemplated declaring a state of emergency on Wednesday after a 14-year-old girl died by suicide. He said he’s aware of 10 other recent suicide attempts, which he attributes to the intense pressure of the pandemic and the forced cancellation of the reserve’s mental health programming.
“This weighs heavily on our people,” Fiddler said. “We went from having full programming for our youth and adults to all of that needing to be stopped so abruptly and immediately.”
“I know there were a lot of young people who lost a lot of hope.”
The challenges faced by northern communities in accessing mental health services are not new, but leaders say that the pandemic has brought them back to the surface.
Last fall, Makwa Sahgaiehcan First Nation declared a state of emergency after three suicides were recorded in two weeks, including a 10-year-old girl. The federal government stepped in with a $2.5 million commitment to the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations’ suicide prevention plan, with a focus on youth support. The plan notes suicide is preventable and focuses on a culturally sensitive approach to providing support.
Makwa Sahgaiehcan Chief Ronald Mitsuing said COVID-19 has put the community back on edge, with local RCMP recording a doubling of mental health related calls between March 1 and May 9 compared to the same period last year.
He said many people in his community live without stable internet access, leaving them unable to get counselling and therapy services that are offered over video calls.
SITUATION DETERIORATES
“Things have gotten worse, honestly,” Mitsuing said.
Other First Nations report similar concerns, some to lesser degrees. Canoe Lake Cree First Nation Chief Frances Iron said his community is managing well, but the local health centre has recorded an uptick in mental health-related visits. He said there are escalating anxieties in the community around northern checkpoints restricting travel.
“It feels like we’re on a full lockdown here,” Iron said.
Clearwater River Dene Nation Chief Teddy Clark said he’s optimistic that his community, which recorded 28 cases of COVID -19 as of May 13, is adequately supported by on-reserve staff. However, he acknowledged the virus has heightened anxieties, especially since no one can be sure how long the outbreak in the northwest will continue.
“A lot of people have come to realize that right now nobody really owns their life anymore,” Clark said.
“We’re at the mercy of a virus that still has a lot of unknowns.”
Fiddler said the challenges his First Nation faces are common across the north — making him wonder if the pandemic presents a chance for a more unified northern approach.
“What I take from this is that we need to stop working in silos,” Fiddler said.
WORKING APART
Sally Ratt, who lives in Stanley Mission, said the pandemic highlights the challenges families face to get mental health support in the north.
Her daughter, Ariana, died by suicide at age 12. Ratt said even booking a youth therapy visit took weeks and was often dependent on when doctors travelled north.
“She had dire need of help, but she always came across roadblocks,” Ratt said.
“As a mother of a child who took their own life by suicide, I understand they can’t do everything right away ... And as long as they’re moving forward now, I’m happy with that. It gives me a little hope.”
Some doctors who work in the north say such gaps are the result of a system that is both underfunded and divided.
Dr. Sara Dungavell, a Saskatoon-based
psychiatrist who regularly travels to the north, said therapists and mental health specialists in different regions don’t have a common mechanism to collaborate, even when it might benefit patients.
Sometimes, she might not be able to get a patient’s full background.
A 2019 report from the provincial auditor on suicide rates in the northwest called for a “single, provincially accessible electronic health file for mental health, addictions and suicidal patients.”
The province’s new suicide prevention plan accepted and pledged to implement eight recommendations from that report, but notably did not mention the single-file service.
“We have a lot of people working hard to improve mental health in the north, but we’re running into the same problem that we’ve been running into for decades,” Dungavell said.
As an example, Clearwater River Dene Nation has dedicated psychiatric services while neighbouring La Loche, a primarily Dene and Metis community, does not, she noted.
Minister of Indigenous Services Marc Miller said he’s aware of the taxing role COVID-19 is playing on mental health in the region and across First Nations in general. He said his office has moved quickly to provide services wherever possible.
Miller agreed “jurisdictional squabbles” play a role in delaying access to services, as they do in other regions in Canada that straddle political and territorial lines.
“That is no excuse for inaction, but it does complexify our situation.” Miller said.
“Those are the cards that we are dealt, and they don’t look particularly good in a pandemic.”