Bell Let’s Talk Day is January 28, adds TikTok, Pinterest to campaign

HALIFAX — Ahead of Bell Let’s Talk Day, which happens January 28 this year, Bell Canada announced Thursday it’s providing more than $400,000 through its Bell Let’s Talk initiative to the Halifax-based QEII Health Sciences Centre Foundation to support the introduction of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) at the Nova Scotia Hospital in Dartmouth and Valley Regional Hospital in Kentville.

Used to stimulate or inhibit nerve cells in the brain to alleviate symptoms of depression, the rTMS therapy is intended for the one-third of people with major depressive disorders who don’t respond to medication, explains Bell’s press release.

With the Bell Let’s Talk donation of $420,000, the QEII Foundation has reached its goal of $759,000 to launch the rTMS program in Nova Scotia.

“The innovative treatment, which is minimally invasive and requires no anesthesia, has been sought after for more than 15 years,” said Dr. Michael Flynn, psychiatrist at the Nova Scotia Hospital, in the press release. “We’re incredibly grateful for the generous donation from Bell Let’s Talk to the QEII Foundation. It’s allowing us to take the first step towards setting up a province-wide rTMS program for all Nova Scotians.”

Until now, rTMS has been offered only in a private clinic in Halifax. Nova Scotians will now be able to access this treatment in a public hospital and at no cost. As the first hospital-based rTMS program in Atlantic Canada, the QEII Foundation is helping to introduce new treatment options that will transform care for those fighting treatment-resistant depression, PTSD and other mental health disorders, says the release.

“Bell Let’s Talk is pleased to support improved access to innovative mental health treatments in Nova Scotia. With rTMS, Nova Scotians will now have publicly funded access to the most advanced treatment available for major depressive disorders,” said Mary Deacon, chair of the Bell Let’s Talk initiative.

“rTMS is a treatment that we know will make a difference for many Nova Scotians living with mental illness,” added Rachel Boehm, director of the Nova Scotia Mental Health and Addictions Program in the province’s central zone. “Expanding the range of evidence-based treatments to include rTMS is an exciting development for our Mental Health and Addictions Program and one we couldn’t have achieved without our partnerships with Bell Let’s Talk and the QEII Foundation.”

On Bell Let’s Talk Day on January 28, Bell will donate five cents to Canadian mental health programs for every applicable text, local or long-distance call, tweet or TikTok video (new this year) using #BellLetsTalk, every Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest (also new), Snapchat, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube view of the Bell Let’s Talk video, and every use of the Bell Let’s Talk Facebook frame or Snapchat filter. Bell’s donations are made at no cost to participants beyond what they would normally pay their service provider for online or phone access.

This year’s nationwide Bell Let’s Talk Day multimedia campaign highlights the actions all Canadians can take to help drive progress in mental health in our communities.

In addition, Bell will be announcing new funding for mental health projects across the country this month as well as the launch of the 2021 Bell Let’s Talk Community Fund, a $2-million annual program that provides grants up to $25,000 for local and grassroots mental health initiatives.

Bell will also announce more recipients of the new Bell Let’s Talk Diversity Fund, which supports the mental health and well-being of BIPOC communities across Canada, and is partnering with United Way Centraide Canada throughout January to provide thousands of mobile devices and SIM cards to charitable organizations to help those in greatest need stay connected.

As part of the Bell Let’s Talk Day campaign, Bell Media will feature special mental health content in English and French across its TV, radio and digital properties, including a special episode of CTV’s Etalk featuring Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette, who will speak candidly about her mental health.

Bell Media’s full day of programming on January 28 will include a primetime CTV Bell Let’s Talk Day feature, and a Noovo primetime special La semaine des 4 Julie will focus on mental health.

In addition, La santé mentale: une note à la fois, a documentary shining a light on the lives of musicians living with mental health issues — Steve Veilleux, Laurence Jalbert and Safia Nolin — will air on Canal D, Canal Vie and VRAK and will be available online at Noovo.ca, Vrak.tv, Crave, Canalvie.com and Canald.com.

To learn more about Bell Let’s Talk Day, please click here.

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