Emergency Preparedness and Mental Readiness during CoVID19
Emergency Preparedness Week is an opportunity to encourage all Canadians to take concrete actions to be better prepared to protect themselves and their families during emergencies. This year marks the 25th annual Emergency Preparedness Week.
Mental Health Week is a Canadian tradition, with communities, schools and workplaces rallying to celebrate, protect and promote mental health. This year, the theme is ‘social connection’ and its importance for mental health.
Emergency Preparedness Week (May 3 - 9) and Mental Health Week (May 4-10) takes place this year as we deal with the defining global health crisis of our time. Residents in Burlington are staying home and doing what they can to protect themselves and stop the spread of COVID-19, while frontline personnel and first responders are in the community tirelessly helping others and mitigating the impacts of this virus. We all salute their dedication and hard work.
As we engage in community, we are mindful of the need to physically protect ourselves against the spread of the virus and the need for social connection throughout this time – social connectedness and individual preparedness will help us recover as a community. Socially connected communities simply respond better to crisis and disaster, and rebound better afterwards. (Aldrich, 2017; Banwell & Kingham 2015; Carpenter, 2013.)
#EPW2020: Putting on your Resiliency Backpack
#GetReal about how we feel promoting #socialconnectedness while practicing #physicaldistancing
Nothing is more important than protecting the health and well-being of our community. These are extraordinary times and the City of Burlington, along with its regional and provincial partners are doing whatever we can to keep individuals and families safe and stop the spread of COVID-19.
The best thing residents can do to protect themselves and the community, is stay home – practice physical distancing while leaning into online social connectedness. Together, we ask residents to put on their resiliency backpacks and consider ways in which you can protect yourself, family members and friends of all ages across our community from the virus, limiting community spread, and better preparing for our “new normal” to come.
In an emergency, protecting yourself not only from physical harm is important, but also from mental stress and harm. Your mental health and wellness is important and must be considered as we put on our resiliency backpacks! Filling our backpacks with the following tips and resources will help us to maintain our mental readiness throughout COVID-19.
Tips for protecting your mental health
- Be aware of your thoughts and feelings. It is normal to feel anxious
- Limit the news you are watching or reading and ensure it is from a reliable news source
- Reach out to friends and family through phone calls, video chats, texts
- See resources and supports offered through burlington.ca/covid19resources and the Canadian Mental Health Association – Halton Region Branch https://halton.cmha.ca/
- Keep healthy habits: eat healthy foods, stay active, get a good night’s sleep, drink water
- Limit, reduce or avoid alcohol, drugs and caffeine
- Take advantage of your employer’s employee assistance programs for mental health
Within the page burilngton.ca/covid19resources, there are several organizations offering mental health supports and resources across the City. Many workplaces also offer similar resources and supports through workplace employee assistance programs.
If you do not have access to the internet, you can dial 311 to get the number for an organization that will best suit your needs. If it is an emergency and you feel your life or someone else’s life or well being is in immediate danger, please call 911.
For more information on how to better protect yourself and your loved ones against COVID-19, refer to the following resources:
Public Safety Canada https://www.canada.ca/en/public-safety-canada/campaigns/emergency-preparedness-week.html
Province of Ontario https://www.ontario.ca/page/how-ontario-is-responding-covid-19
Halton Region Public Health webpage https://www.halton.ca/For-Residents/Immunizations-Preventable-Disease/Diseases-Infections/New-Coronavirus