Expect a call – Windsor mental health experts doing a phone survey

The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit will be randomly choosing adults in the Windsor area to call and ask about mental health in the next few weeks.

“In our 2016 Community Needs Assessment Report, mental health was identified as a top priority for Windsor-Essex,” said Dr. Wajid Ahmed, acting medical health officer, in a news release.

He says mental health experts need specific information from Windsor residents, so they can better understand the needs for mental health care.

“In order to plan programs and services that meet the needs of our community, we must improve our understanding of mental health and mental illness in our community,” said Ahmed.

Ipsos Public Affairs will be conducting the survey on behalf of the health unit. This is the first mental health phone survey in Windsor, and the phone call will cover such topics as knowledge and attitudes about mental health and mental health supports and services in Windsor and Essex County.

The health unit wants to make sure the local residents can easily get educational help and supports.

“By assessing baseline knowledge and attitudes, the WECHU and other partners will be able to target efforts to address any gaps,” said Nicole Dupuis, director of health promotion, in a news release.

Ipsos telephone interviewers will call the numbers randomly selected by computer program from a publicly available database, and the survey will take approximately 15 minutes. All the information from the phone call will be confidential and anonymous, so personal information collected will not be linked to an individual person.