Moving on to Canada, Dr. Branka Agic, Manager of Health Equity at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) and Project Lead of CAMH's Refugee Mental Health Project, focused on post resettlement needs and challenges. Her presentation, Mental Health and Well Being of Refugees in Canada, provided an in depth look into this vulnerable population. Since November, Canada has accepted 26,176 refugees. Accepting refugees is not new. Canada has received 1.2 million refugees since WW II. The three types of refugees are government sponsored, privately sponsored and asylum seekers.

The mental health status of Syrian refugees has been a concern publicized in the media. Dr. Ertorer's presentation certainly supports this concern, given the adversity they have experienced. But, how much of a problem is this? In reality, refugees probably do not have rates of major mental disorders any higher than average Canadians. However, given their arduous experiences, widespread psychological and social distress is inevitable, manifesting in problems such as: emotional, cognitive, physical, and social/behavioural. Most common mental health issues are anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. The majority recover after reaching safety, but those with existing mental disorders, women, older adults, unaccompanied children, single adults and survivors of torture and severe trauma are at greater risk. Dr. Agic enlightened us about the social determinants of mental health which provide a framework for establishing supports. They are: income, housing, social support, education, employment, social inclusion, language, and health services. Socioeconomic factors have been identified by refugees as being more helpful than medical intervention. Branka emphasized the importance of using an asset based approach which focuses on strengths and resilience. We must recognize that it takes courage to be a refugee; refugees have an enormous capacity to overcome adversity. What can we do?