The Head to Heart Rural Mental Wellness Day will take place on March 23 at the Nanton Community Center.
Raising awareness and supporting rural mental wellbeing will be in the spotlight this month.
The High River District Health Care Foundation is partnering with the Nanton Quality of Life Foundation for Head to Heart Rural Mental Wellness Day on March 23, which will include a health and wellness fair, keynote speakers and an on-site advisor.
“In an effort to support rural communities in our area, the High River District Health Care Foundation is excited to partner with our friends at the Nanton Quality of Life Foundation,” said Wendy Kennelly, Executive Director of the High River District Health Care Foundation, in One release. “Their support in planning and promoting the event will be the tipping point of our success.” It’s been fun collaborating with another agency, while providing inspiration and resources to families in our rural districts.
The event, which will take place from noon to 3 p.m. at the Nanton Community Centre, is designed to provide a day of welcome for rural residents to access information on mental wellbeing.
“We know there can be confusion about what services are available and how to access them,” Kennelly added. “Our goal is to make information accessible at a time of year when ranching and farming families are “less busy” and might have time to come into town for the afternoon.
Statistics provided by the High River District Health Care Foundation show the importance of opening the dialogue about mental health in rural communities.
A national survey of farmers’ mental health conducted at the University of Guelph found that 76 per cent of Canadian farmers were classified as experiencing high perceived stress.
One in four Canadian farmers have thought about suicide in the past 12 months, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information 2022.
Additionally, a backgrounder released by the O’Brien Institute of Public Health at the University of Calgary indicates that one in four hospitalizations among Canadians aged five to 24 is due to mental health reasons.
“We are very excited to co-host this rural mental wellness day in Nanton,” added Lynne Cox, Executive Director of Nanton Quality of Life.
“Any time we can come together as a community, we can lean on each other and see that we are not alone when we go through difficult times or simple daily challenges. Having the foundation support these types of proactive health care activities is a win for Nanton and the surrounding area.
Guest speakers in Nanton will include Chris Koch and Jody Seeley, and the show will feature information across the spectrum of service providers, advisors and agencies, including AgKnow and My Kick Stand.
A free lunch will be offered to the first 50 participants.
To learn more, visit highriverhealthfoundation.ca.
