Suicide Is Preventable~All Affected & All Psychological Injuries Need To Be Included In Wording Of #C211 Legislation

Saving & Improving Lives Needs The Proper Wording In Legislation There is much buzz about "PTSD" (let's call it PTSI) in the media, and now at the Canadian Federal Parliament with a vote March 8, 2017 on Private Members' Bill C-211. Any legislation should be all inclusive of people and of all phychological diagnosis'. Saskatchewan seems to be the only Canadian jurisdiction to get this right. Read media report here about what Saskatchewan is doing. All people who have advocated for and are supporting Bill C-211 should be congratulated and have acted in good faith. However, we must do this right, and do it right the first time around, not 'get a foot in the door'. The reality is that those who experience Post Traumatic Stress see their situation as an 'injury', not a 'disorder', so the very name of Bill C-211 as the "PTSD Bill" is offensive to many, despite being drafted with the best of intentions. Paramedics/Ambulance, Police, Fire, Corrections, Military, Nurses, Doctors, Social Workers, and all people who provide services to help others should be included. There are many other psychological injuries that exist (other than PTSD), and actually are far more common than PTSI. [...]

By |2017-03-08T11:50:09-05:00March 8th, 2017|Community Building, Reference Documents|0 Comments

[Blog] What Is Social Alchemy? & Why It Is Important For Social Media Professionals

Social alchemy is transforming something bad into something good. People who facilitate social alchemy are referred to as alchemists. Aurora, Ontario Post Traumatic Stress advocate Kate Gille has become an alchemist, and she may not even know it! The goal of this blog post is to educate others to engage in the concept of social alchemy, especially on social media where so much negativity can happen. Let's take it to a positive in person dialogue. "Together we are stronger". The Future : The Past for @GraffitiBMXCop @TorontoPolice pic.twitter.com/PYkCSjRRNz— Kate Gillie (@KateGillieART) August 21, 2015 The concept of social alchemy first came to my attention in 2009 during a presentation at Humber College Lakeshore Campus in Professor Arthur Lockhart's Criminal Justice Studies class that I was doing with graffiti artist Jessey Pacho. It was pointed out by Professor Lockhart that both Jessey and I were practicing alchemists and we didn't even know it! Since that time, the concept of social alchemy is something I have tried to incorporate consciously into my daily work life managing Toronto Police Service social media accounts. Watch the Art's explanation of social alchemy here: As the Toronto Police Service Social Media Officer, my daily job involves [...]