CMHO is pleased to announce our 2023 Conference “Together for Tomorrow: Advancing quality, equity, and access in child and youth mental health.”

Coming out of the pandemic, the mental health needs of Ontario’s infants, children, youth, and families have never been greater. Looking back on lessons learned and innovations in service delivery over the pandemic, we have an opportunity as system leaders to come together for a better tomorrow and to co-create a child and youth mental health system that provides timely and equitable access to high-quality mental health care for all Ontario families.

We are excited to be coming together in person again for North America’s largest child and youth mental health conference from November 19-21, 2023 at the Marriott Downtown at CF Toronto Eaton Centre! With the goal of building a stronger mental health system for infants, children, and youth, this conference convenes leaders from community-based child and youth mental health centres and key system partners, including those from hospitals, primary care, education, child welfare, youth justice, adult mental health, and youth and families with lived expertise. The conference provides an opportunity to highlight evidence-based practices, share knowledge and experiences, and build on our collective efforts to improve outcomes for infants, children, and youth, together with their families.

Proposals must be submitted by 5:00pm on June 23, 2023.

CONFERENCE OBJECTIVES
Advance quality, equity and access in child and youth mental health by:
• Showcasing leading research and emerging practices
• Addressing challenges facing the sector and seeking solutions
• Identifying opportunities to lead and collectively influence system change
• Raising the voice of individuals with lived experience and their families

WHO WILL ATTEND?
• CMHO Members: Executive Directors, Board Members, Clinical Leaders, Administrative Leaders, and Direct Service/Front-line Providers
• Mental Health Leads from School Boards
• Mental Health Professionals
• Child Protection Leaders
• Youth Justice Leaders
• Child Development Leaders
• Healthcare System Leaders from primary care, hospitals, and community partners
• Public Health Professionals
• Government Officials
• Youth (from The New Mentality, The Youth Action Committee, and elsewhere)
• Families (from Parents for Children’s Mental Health and elsewhere)
• …and more!

BE A PART OF LEADING CHANGE BY SUBMITTING A PRESENTATION PROPOSAL

The CMHO Conference team is seeking submissions that provide practical examples of how you or your organization have taken bold steps to address a challenging issue related to child and youth mental health and what you learned along the way. Workshops that highlight innovative, evidence-based initiatives and approaches and provide practical takeaways for participants are encouraged. Primary audiences are:

1. Clinical leaders and front-line clinicians working in child and youth mental health
2. Community leaders working in leadership, policy, and governance roles, including executive directors and board members of CYMH agencies

STREAMS:

NOTE:  We recognize that there is overlap between the streams of quality, equity and access.  We understand that some presentations may align with multiple lstreams, and as such, we welcome you to selct as many of the below three streams that apply to your submission.

1. QUALITY

• Assessment, outcomes, performance measurement, measurement-based care, and system indicators
• Incorporating youth and/or family voice in the treatment approach and pathways
• Quality improvement
• Building a culture of continuous improvement
• Change management initiatives to foster innovation
• Leadership style and its impact on processes and outcomes
• Board tools and practices to stimulate innovative ideas
• Implementing quality standards

2. EQUITY

Broad Equity Practices
• Applying a social determinants of health lens
• Equity strategies for agency
• Data and governance practices
• Culturally responsive programs and services

Population-Specific
• Complexity or acuity
• Addictions and Substance use
• Development stage (infant, school-age, teen, young parents)
• Neurodevelopmental disorders
• Indigenous populations
• 2SLGBTQ+
• Francophone populations (presentations in French welcome!)
• Racialized communities
• Black communities
• Northern, rural, and remote communities

3. ACCESS

• Integrating care and supporting better pathways between sectors, such as: primary care, schools, child welfare, hospitals, youth justice, adult mental health/addictions, etc.
• Pathways between care levels/stepped care model
• Centralized access and coordination
• Addressing wait times/lists and supporting timely care

PRESENTATION FORMATS

A. Workshop: 60-minute presentation + 30 minutes of interaction and discussion
B. Poster: visual display of a project on a poster board

Proposals must be submitted by 5:00pm on June 23, 2023.

Please provide presenter names as you would like them to appear in the conference program.

Please note: Based on the number of presentations we receive, we may have to combine presentations. If your abstract is not accepted, you may have an opportunity to present a poster presentation.

Posters: The committee is limiting each poster to one presenter. Include a short biography (max 100 words) for the presenter who will be taking part in the poster display. Proposals that are supported by research and evidence are encouraged, as are those involving lived experience or community-based programming.

Please note: The presenter may submit multiple abstracts for the conference. One submission for each presentation.

The presenter may submit multiple abstracts for the conference. One submission for each presentation. Please note: Workshops are limited to 4 presenters. The person submitting the proposal is the contact person and will be the only person contacted about the proposal (it will be that person’s responsibility to communicate with others involved).