Benzodiazepines have been associated with suicidal behaviour in older adults. This study aimed to examine the association between the use of benzodiazepines and suicidal ideation or death thoughts in 2,494 community-dwelling older adults who took part in an interview. Multivariate analysis showed that suicidal ideation or death thoughts were significantly associated with long-term use and a high dose of benzodiazepines. Other contributing factors were the presence of psychological distress symptoms, daily hassles' level, chronic illnesses, and marital status. Physicians should pay attention to the potential for inappropriate prescribing of psychotropic drugs in the elderly with suicide-related risk factors.

The purpose of this research was to develop an understanding of important characteristics of supported housing (SH) for individuals with serious mental illnesses. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with residents of SH and service providers. Data were analyzed using the constant comparative approach. Four central themes emerged from data analysis: SH as a foundation for recovery, guiding values for SH, supports offered in SH, and neighbourhood/community context. This research has uncovered several key characteristics of SH that can be used to guide the development of new housing programs, to review current programs, as a tool for self-advocacy, and as the foci for further research.

This paper describes an empowering program narrative identified in a study about the experience of “moving on” for individuals with a major mental illness who had been homeless before obtaining permanent housing with support. Personal stories are idiosyncratic but involve the integration of individual, unique experiences with narratives from various communities of membership. Multiple sources of data were obtained to identify the program narrative (participant and staff interviews, participant observation, and document analyses). This research contributes to knowledge about what works when a program works—how to identify what is effective, and what can be learned in assessing and developing other programs.

Relatively little is known about how rural living influences the health of women. We explored how young women (18–39 years) living in two rural communities in Nova Scotia, Canada, perceive the impact of the physical and social environments on their emotional and mental health. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 27 women. Our research indicates that specific characteristics of the physical and social environments promote feelings and experiences of “connectedness,” thus contributing positively to emotional and mental health. However, other features of the environments operate as obstacles to connectedness (particularly to services and supports), and negatively impact the women's emotional and mental health.

Research has shown that the expansion of gambling is an important public health concern and a public health approach should be applied to study problem gambling (Canadian Public Health Association, 2000; Korn, 2000; Korn & Shaffer, 1999). However, such an approach is underutilized. Therefore, a conceptual framework was developed to study problem gambling (or pathological gambling) based on Evans and Stoddart's (1990) popular population health model. This framework can be used to identify psychosocial/social, genetic, and environmental correlates of problem gambling and important relationships between problem gambling and health and functioning, mental and physical health conditions, and help-seeking behaviours.

This article reports on a qualitative study examining the experiences and recovery needs of substanceusing pregnant women, with a primary focus on women's engagement by child protection services (CPS) in addiction recovery programs. Current CPS policies and practices have largely failed to engage these women, despite women's stated desire for recovery support during pregnancy. Three core themes related to women's primary need for safety—the need for collaborative relationships with CPS, children as motivators for change, and needed modifications in the social environment—are discussed. Implications for social policy and direct practice in regard to CPS engagement of substance-using pregnant women in recovery programs are examined.

Although brief intervention (BI) is an empirically validated treatment modality for alcohol dependence, it has generally failed to gain wide acceptance in practice. Most studies have focused exclusively on individuals with alcohol problems, and little is known about the effectiveness for patients with other drug problems. The objective of this study was to examine the effectiveness of BI compared to standard therapy for drug and alcohol dependence in an outpatient treatment program. The study was conducted at the Addictions Unit of the McGill University Health Centre in Montreal. The trial compared 72 patients randomly assigned at intake to an individual 5-session brief intervention (BI) or a 6-month conventional treatment (CT) consisting of individual and group therapy. At 6 months' follow-up, the BI (N = 19) and CT (N = 20) groups were compared in terms of substance use, psychological, health, and occupational outcomes. There were approximately equivalent changes in both treatment groups compared to intake. Under the conditions of the present trial, CT did not show superiority over BI, providing additional support for the notion that BI can be an effective first step in the treatment of alcohol and drug dependence in a variety of health care settings.

This paper explores the ways that Aboriginal people living with HIV and AIDS experience feelings of depression. Seventy-two individuals participated in an in-depth semi-structured interview. Many participants described their depression in terms of their relationships, including isolation or a disconnection from people, communities, and culture. Depression was closely linked to their individual experiences with racism, a history of fostering and adoption, childhood abuse, disconnection from family and community, and substance abuse. The paper ends with a discussion of how our findings compare to those from research on non-Aboriginal populations and with a consideration of their service-related implications.

This exploratory descriptive research attempts to determine current preferences and understandings of terms used to refer to persons with a mental illness. From September 2005 to January 2006, 760 surveys were completed across Canada at mental health conferences and meetings, via provincial and national mental health websites, and during college classes. Respondents were asked to indicate whether they were a mental health service provider, an individual with mental illness, a friend or family member, or someone not in the three categories mentioned. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected. Analyses of the data indicate that respondents show an aversion to labels, and a majority of respondents prefer to use the term individual or the person's name.

Quarante ans après l'amorce du processus de désinstitutionalisation, l'intégration sociale des personnes ayant des troubles mentaux graves constitue toujours un enjeu. De fait, leurs conditions de vie sont davantage marquées par l'exclusion, tant d'un point de vue social qu'économique. Afin de faire face à cette situation, et soutenir les personnes dans leur cheminement, a été développé le suivi intensif en équipe dans la communauté. Alors que jusqu'à présent, le regard porté sur ce programme a été surtout évaluatif, cette étude qualitative exploratoire a été menée dans l'optique d'identifier les facteurs qui facilitent ou nuisent au cheminement vers l'intégration sociale de ces personnes. Les études de dossiers et des entrevues semi-dirigées réalisées auprès des 9 participants et participantes de l'étude révèlent l'existence d'une diversité de parcours de vie communautaire. En effet, les analyses de données verticales et transversales ont permis de mettre en évidence 3 modes de vie (nomade, domestique et social), reflétant les façons d'interagir et de participer de ce groupe d'individus. Ces résultats contribuent à lever le voile sur différents enjeux associés à la pratique du suivi intensif en équipe dans la communauté.

To document the experience of adult food insecurity in an urban context, a community-university research collaboration conducted a qualitative study of adults' personal experiences of food insecurity and its perceived effects on aspects of health, using individual interviews with food-insecure adults. The study was designed to gain understanding of experiential knowledge and to relate respondents' experiences to an extant conceptual model (Campbell, 1991). Respondents reported insufficient access to food and experienced personal distress, frustration, and despair, which they linked to food insecurity. Food insecurity affected participation in typical social activities and contributed to feelings of isolation and alienation.