Watch Intro Video

PLAY TRAILER

What you will learn

  • Work/Life Balance

    This case study (film) focuses on the promotion of work/life balance and wellness principles for lawyers regarding mental health, substance use and addiction awareness for the legal profession. The film aims to present the problems that homeless people experience not only as an isolated social problem found on the streets of our society, but also problems present in the workplace, common among legal and business professionals as well.

  • Mental health, substance use and addiction education and prevention

    The CPD course based on this case study (film) addresses mental health, substance use and addiction education and prevention, with a special focus on legal and business professionals who are particularly at risk due to their high stress jobs and struggles to attain wellness and achieve work-life balance.

  • Awareness and Understanding

    The case study (film) aims to reduce stigma, and promote awareness and understanding, of the issue. As explained by the filmmaker Stephen Coleman, “Project Cold Days is a documentary film about much more than homelessness. It explores elements of the human condition that unite us all, focusing on mental health, substance use and addiction.”

GENERAL PROGRAM OBJECTIVE OF THE CPD ACTIVITY

The overall objective of this course is the promotion of work/life balance and wellness principles for lawyers, accountants and other professionals, regarding mental health, substance use and addiction awareness. One of the biggest hurdles for anyone suffering from mental health disorders, substance use or addiction – such as depression or alcoholism – is overcoming the stigma attached to it. This course aims to help reduce this stigma and promote awareness and understanding, and encourage necessary steps towards lasting change.

Specific Learning Objectives

  • Discussion on the increasing evidence suggesting that legal professionals may be at an even higher risk than the general population of experiencing career and life challenges/struggles with mental illness and addictions.

  • Discussion on the key preventive and management strategies to address mental health and substance use and addiction issues in the legal profession.

  • Discussion on prevention and successful treatment of alcoholism and substance use, such as early detection.

  • Discussion about the awareness of Lawyer Assistance Programs and other programs designed to protect lawyers but also the public from lawyer misconduct.

  • Discussion on general wellness practices such as benefits of mindfulness to prevent and reduce mental health and substance use issues in the legal profession.

  • Breaking the stigma (Anti-Stigma) surrounding mental health disorders, substance use and addiction in the legal profession – *featuring personal testimonies of lived experiences by legal and business professionals of mental health illnesses and substance use/addiction.


POST-SCREENING SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS:



Dr. Kim Corace, PhD, clinical psychologist and Associate Professor at the Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine of the University of Ottawa (expert)

Dr. Kim Corace demonstrates how research and science inform clinical practice and lead to improved quality of care. Since earning her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from York University in 2008, Dr. Corace has demonstrated an outstanding track record in building regional, provincial, and national research and clinical collaborations and partnerships. She was recruited as The Royal’s Director of Research and Program Development in the Substance Use and Concurrent Disorders Program and as a Clinician Scientist at The Royal’s Institute of Mental Health Research, proudly affiliated with the University of Ottawa. Dr. Corace’s research, clinical, teaching, and advocacy efforts have led to sustainable improvements in mental health and addiction care, better client outcomes, and reduced stigma. She inspires hope in clients and families, gives impetus to the research community, and is a catalyst to improve the mental health and addictions system. In 2017, she was the Inspiration Award Recipient. 




Alison Crosthwait, CFA, RP, CTP, Dipl, Registered psychotherapist, Author, and Blogger

A former capital markets trader, working for companies such as Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse, Alison came to the world of therapy through a personal journey, which led to both a career and life change. Throughout her adult life, inner work has been of increasing importance to Alison. She engages deeply in therapy, meditation, and somatic practices to continue her exploration and her healing. She feels strongly that all healing practitioners must continue to actively engage with their own journeys while they work with others on theirs. Alison believes that therapy is much more than a health care treatment option, it is a way of life which she explores each week in her blog writing about psychotherapy and change.




Dr. Amy Porath, PhD, Director, Research, Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (expert)

For the past 17 years, Dr. Amy Porath’s research on substance use issues has focused on cannabis and drug-impaired driving. She is an internationally recognized subject-matter expert and in-demand speaker.  The Government of Canada, parliamentary committees and the Senate, and the World Health Organization regularly seek out her expertise. 

Dr. Porath holds a PhD in psychology from Carleton University and joined CCSA in August 2007. She is a member of the College on Problems of Drug Dependence, the International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety, and the Canadian Society of Addiction Medicine. She is co-chair of CCSA’s Expert Advisory Group on cannabis and is on a working group developing new guidelines for cannabis use disorder among older adults. She ensures that CCSA advances and responds to gaps in knowledge in the substance use and addiction field to inform policies and practice.

Amy has served as an expert in Health Canada’s national cannabis public education campaign, starred in Cannabis Legalization in Canada: A Mini-Series, and been named as one of Canada’s Top 100 Health and Influencers of 2019 by OptiMYz magazine, a leading wellness magazine for women.

Course curriculum

  • 1

    Project Cold Days - Documentary Film Case Study

    • Project Cold Days - Full Movie

  • 2

    The Experts Talk

    • Experts speak about the case study, mental health, and substance use.

  • 3

    Real Lived Experiences

    • Personal stories about the struggle with mental health and substance use.

  • 4

    Project Cold Days - Quiz

    • Quiz