Meeting 25 MAR 2003
EPI (Early Psychosis Intervention) Parents' Meeting, March 25, 2003
The meeting started with a round of introductions and a quick "check-in"
from everybody in attendance. There were 10 family members with two families
being new to the group.
A report from an EPI confrence held in Toronto was presented by one
of the family members who attended as a representative of this group. The
report explained the differences between support groups in the East and West.
Apparently this region is quite advanced with our ties to EPI. In the East, groups are
having to raise funds with bake sales etc. The have started support groups
from the grass roots level with no mental health facilitators.
The primary focus is to lobby for reasonable fees so that families can attend
the World EPI conference in Vancouver from September 28th to October 1st, 2004.
An email network has been established for keeping in touch.
The next subject was with regard to the future of this group. Two choices were tabled:
a) Support Group - Continue as a support group
b) Planning Group - Move forward to focus on advocacy
The majority of attendees like the support group and find it invaluable
so the decision was made to maintain status quo.
A seperate planning group will be established for those who would like to do
more advocacy. A seperate date and time was established for this group.
Other information:
An article written in the Surrey Leader "Surrey fund helps those with mental illnesses"
explained that the Lorne Frazer Educational Fund is available for post
secondary studies. More information can be obtained by contacting 604-688-3234
or www.cmha-bc.org
At the previous meeting a suggestion was made that now that a few families
feel more comfortable and are understanding the illness and it's impact on
families, that they should offer their support to new families. This could
be done by meeting for coffee or talking on the phone with a family who has
recently had a family member diagnosed with the illness. Interested group
members were asked to let the facilitator know.
There are now 152 families on the EPI mailing list, and it was questioned how
more families could be encouraged to be involved.
It was decided that it is useful to have a specific topic for discussion at these
meetings so next month the topic will be "Hallucinations"
If you have comments you would like to share please email pspops@psychosissupport.com