SSA Advocacy

  Advocacy Partnerships

What is Advocacy?

An advocate is someone who speaks up for others. The advocate may be an individual or an organization.  There are essentially two types of advocacy - systemic¹ and individual².  In both cases, it is a person speaking out on behalf of another.  Advocacy may be as simple as finding information for someone, or as involved as attending a legal hearing with a person, or developing a strategy to shift an organization's decision or societal opinion.

In its 20+ year history, the Schizophrenia Society of Alberta has had many successes in its advocacy role.  Notable are the SSA's involvement of the establishment of the Novartis Chair on Schizophrenia Research at the University of Calgary, the many submissions of the SSA's Advocacy Office, and the recent award presented to a long standing member and volunteer of the SSA.  The Alberta Human Rights Award was presented by the Alberta Commission on Human Rights and Citizenship in recognition of his concerted advocacy efforts on behalf of an individual with Schizophrenia.

Developing an effective systemic advocacy strategy is not simple.  It is not a case of walking into an office and recommending a decision and expecting the decision to be implemented.  Systemic advocacy is often complex.  It requires that the issue to be advocated be examined.  Is the  issue a simple one?  Are there contributing factors that must be considered?  What is the level of information or research available?  Is there sufficient supporting documentation to support the advocacy efforts?  Is there a history that needs to be considered?  What are the costs?  Is this an issue that needs to be taken in stages?  What do the public and key decision makers feel about about the issue?

The Schizophrenia Society of Alberta wishes to build on its advocacy successes.  It recognizes that the SSA members and staff cannot do it on their own.  Advocacy on the many different issues that face individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia and their families will exceed the organization's limited resources.  Skills and knowledge will need to come from without.  Consequently a mechanism must be in place to enable these different efforts to move forward.  With the establishment of the Advocacy Committee and its mandate to establish working groups to address specific issues, it is hoped the Schizophrenia Society of Alberta will be able to address many diverse issues at the same time.

Historically, we have advocated for the following items:

• advocate for the use of atypical medications as first line treatment;
• advocate for changes to the Mental Health Act, including the instatement of Community Treatment Orders;
• advocate for changes in the justice system;
• advocate for better housing and for the elimination of homelessness;
• advocate for adequate income;
• advocate for programs providing meaningful employment;
• and to ensure that the mentally ill are not discriminated against regarding the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom.

¹Systemic Advocacy:  also referred to as social action, includes efforts aimed at changing legislation, policies, practices, opportunities and attitudes.  It is aimed at making changes in the system that will have an effect on the lives of a group of people.  Source:  "Self-Advocacy Guide", Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada, Alberta Division, August 2000. 

²Individual Advocacy:  includes efforts aimed at supporting, empowering or acting on behalf of an individual.  Sometimes viewed as "going to bat" for a person, individual advocacy helps where one feels he/she has not been treated as he/she should have been.  Source:  "Self-Advocacy Guide", Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada, Alberta Division, August 2000.