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  3. Student Mental Health Policy

Student Mental Health Policy

Final Approval Body: Senior Leadership Team
Senior Administrative Position with Responsibility for Policy: Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic)
Date Initially Approved: January 28, 2025

Purpose

This policy describes the university’s programs, services and supports with respect to student mental health. It includes a link to a centralized webpage that provides students easy access to up-to-date information about on-campus and community-based resources that span the holistic range of approaches from mental health and wellness promotion to crisis response.

This policy responds to a Ministerial Student Mental Health Directive pursuant to section 19 of the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities Act requiring Ontario’s publicly assisted colleges and universities to have a student mental health policy in place.

Policy Statement

Commitment to Student Mental Health

¹û½´ÊÓƵ is committed to promoting and supporting student mental health and wellbeing through a strengths-based, person-focused, whole-campus approach that includes and prioritizes culturally relevant supports.

Queen’s acknowledges the effects of colonization and systemic racism in all aspects of Indigenous peoples’ and community’s health and wellbeing. The university’s commitment to student mental health includes and prioritizes the integration of Indigenous perspectives, and ways of knowing and being, in recognition of the interconnectedness of mental, physical, spiritual, and emotional wellbeing. This includes privileging and supporting the connection to land through teaching, ceremonies, and access. This is important for Indigenous students and also benefits the entire campus community.

Queen’s recognizes that all members of its community have a role to play in promoting positive student mental health. The university student experience is inherently stressful; faculty, staff, students, and governing bodies, collectively share responsibility for fostering an inclusive, respectful, equitable, supportive, and accessible Queen's community, shaping a campus in which health, including mental health and wellbeing, is viewed holistically. This can be demonstrated through education, community engagement, empathy, and contributing to safe, respectful and supportive environments.

Policy Alignment and Guidance

This policy is in alignment with the Okanagan Charter: An International Charter For Health Promoting University And Colleges, adopted by Queen’s in 2019, the Queen’s Campus Wellbeing Framework (2020), and Queen’s Strategy (2021). Further, this policy is evidence-informed and guided by recommendations, best practices and tools from the , the (CICMH), (BP-Net) and the .

This policy is informed by consultations with the campus community, including students, and data collected from the and the Queen’s Shift Survey.

This policy also aligns with recommendations from the Queen’s Yakwanastahentéha Aankenjigemi: Extending the Rafters: Truth and Reconciliation Commission Task Force Final Report, prioritizing reconciliation and culturally relevant practices in mental health support. The policy also supports the spirit of the national Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action related to Indigenous health.

Scope

This policy applies to all Queen’s University students.

This policy is intended to complement university policies addressing student health, wellness, and accessibility, including:

Other related policies and protocols include:

 

Guiding Principles

The following principles guide this student mental health policy:

  • Equity and Inclusion: Mental health resources and supports will be designed to meet the diverse needs of Queen’s University’s student population, with particular attention to Indigenous students and other marginalized and equity-deserving student communities.
  • Proactive Support: Resources will prioritize prevention, early intervention, and the reduction of barriers to accessing care,
  • Collaboration: The university will work with internal and external partners, including student organizations, health professionals, community services, Elders, and knowledge keepers to support student mental health.
  • Accountability: Transparent reporting, evaluation, and continuous improvement will ensure the effectiveness of mental health initiatives.

Objectives

The following objectives describe the broad guidelines for actions taken at Queen's to appropriately and effectively promote student wellbeing, build an equitable environment that supports positive mental health, and respond to students in distress.

1. Provide Comprehensive Mental Health Support Services and Resources

To promote a supportive and inclusive campus environment, the university will ensure students can access a comprehensive range of mental health support. This includes:

  • Offering students a holistic array of mental health services, programs, and resources, including health promotion, mental health intervention and crisis response, both on-campus and through off-campus referrals
  • Making information about these offerings easily accessible on the centralized webpage linked above.
  • Providing clear and accessible information about mental health crisis supports to assist students in times of immediate need.
  • Developing tailored services and resources to address the unique mental health needs of Indigenous and other diverse student populations.
  • Encouraging prevention and early intervention strategies through the delivery of professional and peer-led wellness programming, including education and outreach initiatives, stress management workshops, resilience training, and peer support services. These strategies also incorporate culturally relevant practices to advance student mental health and holistic wellbeing.

2. Promote Mental Health Awareness, Education, and Proactive Support

To foster a campus culture of awareness, education, and proactive support, the university will:

  • Support mental health promotion campaigns on topics such as stigma reduction, promoting help-seeking behaviours, harm reduction, and mental health literacy.
  • Collaborate with students and campus partners to co-develop targeted mental health initiatives, campaigns, and culturally relevant supports for Indigenous and other equity-deserving student communities.
  • Leverage evidence-informed approaches and best practices to guide the development and delivery of these campaigns and initiatives.

3. Maintain Crisis Management and Intervention Protocols

To ensure a safe and supportive environment during times of crisis, the university will:

4. Evaluation and Accountability

To promote transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement in supporting student mental health, the university will:

  • Produce an annual report on the implementation of this student mental health policy. This report will include statistics on mental health services and programs, resource and initiative highlights, student feedback and future plans / next steps. Where applicable, the report will reflect on the role of culturally relevant practices in advancing student wellbeing.
  • Apply data from service use, student health surveys, and other metrics to assess the effectiveness of mental health initiatives and identify gaps in services.
  • Consult with, and collect regular feedback from students, including Indigenous and other equity-deserving groups, to ensure mental health services and programming meet the evolving needs of the campus community
  • Consult with and collect regular feedback from campus partners to co-develop student mental health programs, services, and supports.
  • Periodically review and update this policy to align with emerging best practices and ensure its relevance and impact

 

Responsible Officer: Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic)
Contact: provost@queensu.ca
Date for Next Review: January, 2030