Dania Versailles, Co-Lead of the Mental Health and Addictions working group
Dania Versailles, Co-leader of the Mental Health and Addictions working group
Dania Versailles joined the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) as Director of Clinical Services in November 2017. A nurse for almost 27 years, she holds two Master’s degrees in nursing, one of which specializes in mental health and psychiatry.
She began her career as a bedside nurse at the Lakeshore Hospital in Montreal and went on to the Ottawa Hospital and the Hôpital Montfort as a home care manager. But that wasn’t enough. She has long been interested in management and training, which is what prompted her to pursue graduate studies. Today, many trainees can now boast of having had her as a supervisor.
While working as a Clinical Nurse Specialist in the Mental Health Program (MHP) at Montfort, she led several initiatives, including the development of the Suicide Risk Behaviour Management Program, the expansion of the Falls Prevention Program, and the implementation of Continuous Quality Improvement activities while completing her Master’s degree in Mental Health. As a result of her expertise, many of the clinical activities are now interprofessional activities.
The patient partner is very important. That’s part of what drew her to CMHA and why she’s so involved with the Ottawa East Ontario Health Team. “For a care pathway to be truly effective, it must be person-centred,” she says. The best way to understand needs is to get input from the people who need the care and services. This is also the way to demystify mental health, she adds.
“It takes a lot of effort to change beliefs. It’s an investment that has lasting benefits.” Every day, with her teams (she manages five!), Dania contributes to breaking down the barriers that still surround mental health disorders and addiction.
“We need to humanize our services.”
The lack of resources is everywhere… and the pandemic has only exacerbated the problem. CMHA teams can attest of it. People continue to be referred, yet the waitlist is long. In some cases, we are talking about years to obtain certain services.
“In the community, I have understood the importance of forging links with partners. You have to get out of your own backyard once in a while. It’s an element of survival and a springboard that leads us to go further, together.
In concrete terms, these close ties have made it possible to acquire hundreds of smartphones so that vulnerable clients can, despite the health measures in place, participate in support groups to minimise the impact of social isolation since the beginning of the pandemic.
It is in part to strengthen these connections, and to create new ones, that she puts so much energy into the activities of the Eastern Ottawa Health Ontario team. As co-leader of the Mental Health and Addictions (MH&A) working group, Dania and the team members began their work during the pandemic, meeting every fortnight despite already full schedules.
“The resource problems didn’t stop during the pandemic. Neither did we”. The MH&A group meetings are full of energy and rich, stimulating conversations.
We all have at least one personal cause we care about. For Dania, it’s Autism Ontario, an organization that represents the thousands of people and their families who live with the gifts and challenges of autism spectrum disorder. She is involved in raising public and government awareness of the lack of resources available to families like hers.
In addition to all these activities, she is involved in the inter-OHT table to promote and raise awareness of mental health needs with partners and government. She also participates in a variety of RNAO activities.
A superficial problem often hides a deeper one, and treating the symptoms does not necessarily cure. The whole person must be addressed in order to treat effectively. It is this holistic view of health that Dania wishes to share with our Health Team partners (and others).
In addition to her work as a director and her involvement in multiple organizations, she has also found time to participate in a recently published research project and in advocacy activities against injustice.
- Tackling discrimination and systemic racism in academic and workplace settings
- Black nurses in action: A social movement to end racism and discrimination
- Black nurses Task force report
She has been doing Taekwondo for a few years. While she originally wanted to help her son untangle himself, it has become more of a mother-son activity that they have been practicing diligently for the past 6 years. Dania and her son are currently training to obtain their black belt!The sport is part of her wellness strategy to keep her physical and mental balance, which proved to be a powerful psychological anchor, through Zoom and from a distance, for her and her son during the pandemic.
L'Équipe Santé Ontario Archipel est financée par Santé Ontario.
Nous reconnaissons respectueusement que le territoire sur lequel nous opérons est le territoire traditionnel non cédé des Algonquins.
