WELLINGTON – A new local event is trying to teach farmers and agricultural workers the skills to manage their mental health.
The first of three events, the County of Wellington has partnered with Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) for In the Know: Mental Health Training for Agriculture Workers, an event designed to provide mental health training to farmers, agriculture workers and their support system.
Starting Friday, the program is intended to educate farmers, producers and the persons in the agricultural industry with whom they have regular contact on topics like stress, depression, anxiety, substance misuse and how to start a conversation about mental health.
"The agriculture community faces unique challenges that cause increased rates of stress, mental health issues and suicide among farmers, compared to other professions and industries," said a statement on the event from Agriculture Wellness Ontario. "CMHA Ontario is committed to working with agriculture industry partners, organizations, and passionate individuals to provide education, resources and tools for better well-being."
A free, online event, In the Know was originally developed at the University of Guelph's Ontario Veterinary College to educate the agricultural community and is spearheaded by Dr. Briana Hagen and Dr. Andria Jones-Bitton from the Department of Population Medicine at the University of Guelph.
According to Agriculture Wellness Ontario, the program is designed to fit with farmers/producers’ schedules and is based off of a training pilot from 2019 that showed the course increased participants’ mental health knowledge and confidence in recognizing mental health struggles, speaking about mental health, and helping others who are struggling.
An in-person session will take place at the Wellington County Library on March 1 between 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
More information is available here.
Isabel Buckmaster is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for GuelphToday. LJI is a federally-funded program.
