Assignment 1B

What is the title of your project/ social enterprise/venture?
Working Together for Healthier Minds

What is the main goal of your project?
To promote healthier state of minds by working with youth who are suffering from mental health issues while educating the public on the importance of mental wellness to reduce the stigma that youth experiencing depression ages 18 to 30 faces in Toronto, Canada.

Describe the magnitude of the problem you aim to address
According to the Canadian Mental Health Association, the magnitude of depression is quite significant since at one point in an adult’s life, around 8% of adults will experience some sort of major depression yet 49% of those who suffered from depression or anxiety have never gone to see a doctor to address this issue. This issue also has a large negative magnitude impact economically speaking since an additional $6.3 billion was expended on uninsured mental health services and time off work for those who suffered from depression yet did not get treated by the health care system.

Describe what will be different in your community as a result of your project. Be specific and answer this in no more than 2 sentences. This is the aim of your project.
Patients experiencing a mental health issue like depression will have the opportunity to comfortably express themselves and participate in activities that will aid in improving their mental well-being. In addition, the project will educate the public about depression to eliminate the stigma that some people often associate with mental health.

Using the ‘who, what, why, where when, how’ questions presented earlier in this module write a background summary for the project. The purpose of the background summary is to clearly and briefly identify the key facts and issues related to the problems that your project aims to address.
WHO - The project is aimed towards working with adult youths between the ages of 18 to 30 because depression tends to develop when a person is around mid-20 yet this mental health condition can occur at any age.
WHAT - The project will focus on youth who are interested in promoting a healthier mental health to work with youth who are suffering from depression to implement organized activities such as an event booth on mental wellness week at certain very visible areas of the cities or small campaigns and educational resources such as brochures and pamphlets to educate the public about mental wellness in a comfortable setting.
WHY - When youth who are interested in promoting a healthier mental health are working with youth who are suffering from depression, this will decrease the level of depression youth who are experiencing depression because there are studies that have indicated that one major contributor to reducing depression is to socialize so that a support system can be built with those who are of similar age. The youth who are interested in promoting a healthier mental health but are not experiencing any symptoms of depression can assist youth who are depress engage in different community events that will help improve their mental health condition while those who are also suffering from depression can share their experiences with others in an environment where they know it is a safe and they won’t be judged since there are some youth whom may have gone through similar experiences and may be able to further assist them. By meeting on a weekly basis to implement brochures about mental health for the public where they will set up booth activities at visible locations to educate the public, this is a great activity to promote team work and create a stronger bond between the youth while at the same time, they are working toward reducing the stigma that some people may impose on depression that may not be true. As a result, they are helping other individuals who are suffering from both depression and stigma imposed on individuals.
WHERE - The youth will meet on a weekly basis at a youth centre in Toronto in Canada that will be booked in the evening each week after business hours so that the youth who are experiencing depression can go there comfortably without the fear that someone may identify that they are undergoing depression.
WHEN - The group would meet at least once a week on a weekly basis. When major events approach, more meetings may be necessary.
HOW - Experts in the field of mental health will be contacted to determine what information should be put on the educational resources while members of the community need to be contacted for a youth centre to meet, which mental wellness events in the community would be able to provide us a space to educate the public about mental health and identifying mental health agencies that will be able to assist us in recruiting youth volunteers who are interested in reducing depression and recruiting youth who are experiencing depression.

Now write your objectives using the SMART technique. Explain how each objective will help you to achieve the aim of your project.
1. Objective: The youths will work together to produce 3 different educational resources in the form of a brochure, booklet, or website with the help of experts from mental health agencies in the Toronto area.
How the objective will help achieve the aim of your project: The resources will help reduce the stigma of the public on depression, help certain individuals who are unsure if they have depression or not identify their mental health state, and to provide resources as to where one can get help if needed.

2. Objective: The educational resources will be distributed widely at a minimum of two organized mental health events per year and made available online at their website.
How the objective will help achieve the aim of your project: This improves the exposure of mental health resources access.

3. Objective: The number of visitors at the website will be increased by 5% each year and the number of educational resources distributed will increase by 5% each year as well.
How the objective will help achieve the aim of your project: This will assist us to measure the progress of our project based on the statistics collected from the number of visitors and resources that have generated interest from the public.

Good Project Managers will identify challenges and risks to the success of the project from the beginning and throughout the project cycle. Describe the challenges and risks you face in achieving your project aim.
1. It may be hard to identify youth who are suffering from depression since it will not be easy for them to admit that they have a mental illness
2. It may be a challenge to find a youth centre who would be willing to provide the space for possibly free since youth centre often do not have a lot of money to begin with
3. Another challenge would be to get people to visit the website created or to get them to approach a booth that tries to reduce the stigma of depression when they already have certain views on people with mental illnesses

Assignment 1A - Problem Tree

My greatest interests lies in health and economic development in developing countries. However, one of the greatest issue that my community faces is mental health. I decided to choose a problem that I have never really explore in dept before. I was originally going to choose the underlying stigma associated with mental health but then I decided to go more in dept and chose a specific mental illness that has a strong negative connotation on those who have it but may be overlooked by others as a mental health illness-depression yet it affects many people in the community.

To view Assignment 1A - Problem Tree, please visit: http://www.scribd.com/doc/47467551?secret_password=23vmbrklhavl9u6oennl

I tried to make the problem tree as visible and readable as possible. If there are some words that it not easily readable, please see below:

Leaves: Impact of the Problem

• Feelings of helplessness and hopelessness
• Loss of appetite
• Weight changes
• Sleep changes
• Unexplained increase in physical pain and aches
• Undesirably affects the lives of families and friends (e.g. family and friends may be worry)
• Loss of interest in favourite activities
• Difficulty interacting with others
• Irritability or restlessness
• Work productivity decreases while absenteeism increases
• Loss of energy
• Strong emotional pain of self-loathing (e. g. strong feelings of worthlessness or guilt)
• Problem focusing or concentrating on certain tasks
• Negative impact on the economy-Approximately $44 billion is spent on depression a year

Trunk: Main Problem
According to Bayridge Family Center, the most rapidly increasing diagnosis illness in Canada is depression and anxiety where approximately 8% of adult Canadians will experience a major depression at one point in life, which is not unexpected due to our increasingly stressful society (Bayridge Family Centre, 2007). Moreover, the World Health Organization believes that depression yields the greatest effect on worsening the well-being and health of an individual (The Medical News, 2007).

Roots: Causes of the Problem
Genetic Factors
• Family history of depression

Biological Factors
• Imbalances of neurotransmitters
• Deficiency in serotonin and norepinephrine
• Altered body chemicals (e.g. cortisol)
• Chronic medical conditions (e.g. epilepsy, arthritis, cancer, AIDS)

Environmental Factors
• Traumatic life events
• Marital or relationship problems
• Financial strain
• Early childhood trauma or abuse
• Alcohol or drug abuse
• Employment stress
• Poor quality of life
• Lack of social support

Psychological factors
• Negative or pessimistic perspective of life
• Loneliness

References
“Causes of Depression”. 2009. Healthy Place-America’s Mental Health Centre.

“Depression”. 2011. Canadian Mental Health Association.

Franklin, Donald J. “Depression-Information and Treatment”. 2003. Psychology Information Online.

“Statistics- Depression/Anxiety... Get the Facts”. 2007. Bayridge Family Center.

“What is Depression?”. 2009. Public Health Agency of Canada.

“WHO warns about the impact of depression”. 2007. The Medical News.

Works Cited
“Statistics- Depression/Anxiety... Get the Facts”. 2007. Bayridge Family Center.

“WHO warns about the impact of depression”. 2007. The Medical News.

Thanks,

-Liz

Introduction

Hi everyone,

I am Elisabeth Huang but most people call me Liz-feel free to call me Liz as well.
I am a student at the University of Waterloo who is currently studying Science and Business with a specialization in Biology.
I am a Canadian who enjoy learning new languages and about different cultures.
I am an adventure-seeker, one who always is on the look out for new experiences.
I am an explorer who loves to travel to new destinations.
I am a volunteer at heart-I sincerely believe in making positive contributions to my community.
I am a social advocate who is passionate about global development especially in the areas of health and economic development.

I am interested in learning about the environmental factors and health issues that contribute to the disparity observed in the health conditions of vulnerable populations in developing countries. While at the same time, my business courses has strengthen my interest in economic development in the areas of micro financing and social entrepreneurship. I would like to apply my passion, skills, and education to a career in international development in the future.

I am really grateful to have an opportunity to participate in the E-classroom:Youth Social Entrepreneurship E-course. I am really excited in getting to know each and every one of you. I look forward in working with other young leaders from around the globe to produce social changes that will create a positive impact on various communities.

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask away, and I will do my best and get back to you as soon as possible.

Have a great day.

Cheers,

-Liz