Health Star Program Launched
Community Health Star Myles Mattila – photo 250 News
Prince George, B.C. – Do you know someone making a difference in the health of your community?
If the answer is yes then Northern Health would like to hear from you.
The Community Health Star Program asks members of the public to nominate northerners making a difference to the health of their community and the people living in it.
15 year old Prince George resident Myles Mattila was introduced as the first Community Health Star this afternoon at the University Hospital of Northern BC.
He was recognized for partnering with mindcheck.ca to promote mental health in youth through school presentations.
Mattila was inspired to learn more about mental health because of the struggles an ex-hockey teammate was having and after learning the story of how ex-Canuck Rick Rypien had lost his battle with the illness.
“It’s estimated that one in five Canadians will develop a mental illness at some time in their lives,” said Matilla.
“I’m advocating for people who have issues to know they can get help.”
Prince George-Mackenzie Liberal MLA Mike Morris also spoke this afternoon and said after a 32 year career with the RCMP he knows the issue well.
“The majority of the files I worked on or police officers today are dealing with are people who have addictions issues or mental health issues. And they contribute significantly to the workload that our police officers have,” said Morris.
“And I admire him (Matilla) for doing that at 15 years of age. He showed great leadership by doing what he’s done and I think he’s worthy of being recognized as the first recipient of this award.”
If you’d like to nominate a Community Health Star go to northernhealth.ca. One winner will be announced on a monthly basis.
Comments
Good for Myles , I had a family with Mental Health issues and its not so easy to get help. I wish people would stop lumping people with drug issues and people with mental health issues together there is a big difference. I know this is the wrong place but , I would like to thank all the young people that helped out with the evening of Pink and there are lots over the years. This year there was a special volunteer called Zach with his dads help they fabricated a large metal butterfly and it was auctioned off for $10.000.We hope to see it in the Cancer Clinic.
drug issues and mental health issues are “lumped” together because there are similarities such as drug abuse changes the way the human brain works, mental illness same thing it effects mood thoughts and behavior. Both are health issues, people fear both mental illness and drug addiction. There are few options for getting help for either problem.
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