MOFAS has provided some great information on what women need to know in regards to alcohol and pregnancy, have a read!

For those of you who are not yet subscribers to our iNAT e-newsletter on FASD Interventions, subscribe now to receive the upcoming Fall 2015 edition. The iNAT e-newsletter focuses on research, news, events, organizations and individual stories pertaining to FASD intervention. This edition will feature research findings from the CanFASD/University of Alberta Caregiver Needs project, as well as a story about an Ontario school that has been in the news regarding its program for youth with FASD, and more.

To access previous copies of the newsletter, visit the iNAT page on the CanFASD website.

Have you seen it, the ‘Here For Her’ website?

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Why Are We Doing This?

WE NEED TO DO MORE THAN SIMPLY TELL WOMEN NOT TO DRINK ALCOHOL. WE NEED TO BE HERE FOR THEM.

Although most women know that alcohol consumption during pregnancy can harm their developing baby, some women continue to engage in drinking while pregnant. While there are many reasons why expectant mothers may engage in drinking while pregnant, no women drink to intentionally harm their baby. When they drink, it’s for other reasons – a lack of personal or social supports, addiction or any of the other stressors that come with the new responsibility of motherhood.

Women who are most at risk of having a child with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder(FASD) often describe drinking as a way to cope. They need support from friends, family, the larger community, health care providers and others to address…

Description:

Understanding the medical and disability implications of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is essential for getting to know students with FASD, planning effective instruction and providing the right level of classroom support.

Developed by Dr. Jacqueline Pei and her colleagues, Stephanie Hayes and Alethea Heudes, this PD resource provides an explanation of FASD, its effect on the brain and the impact it can have on student learning, social/emotional behaviour and the classroom environment. Strategies for designing classroom instruction and routines to support students with FASD are also highlighted.

Each of the videos and accompanying learning guides are organized as modules and focus on the following:

• Module One: Prenatal Alcohol Exposure and the Developing Brain
• Module Two: Brain Structure Versus Brain Function
• Module Three: The Brain and Emotional Regulation

These modules can be used by any person or staff wanting to understand Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder!

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Please visit: 

The first module from the Trauma Informed Care Education and Training Project is now available externally! The module: What is Trauma Informed Care? Is now accessible to non-AHS service providers (see below). Please help us spread the word by sending this announcement to your contacts.

This is the introductory learning module in the Trauma Informed Care online learning series. The content is intended for all service providers, regardless of their role. In this module, learners will be introduced to key concepts and practices of Trauma Informed Care. The purpose of this learning opportunity is to increase knowledge about psychological trauma and improve practice to be more trauma informed and patient/client centered.

Training for Non AHS Service Providers

Please note that this module can be completed by anyone.

A certificate of completion can be printed at the end of the module once all four learning checks have been…

By Anna Mehler PapernySenior Producer, Investigative Data Desk  Global News

Ontario’s announcement this week that it plans to sell certain kinds of beer in select grocery stores starting three months from now came as good news to some, but it also raised public health alarm bells.

Groups including the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and theCanadian Centre for Substance Abuse are calling on the province to adopt a provincial “alcohol strategy,” slow down its liberalization of alcohol retail regulations — and maybe change tack altogether.

“From a public health perspective, a move in this direction really is heading down the wrong road,” says Wayne Skinner, CAMH’s Deputy Clinical Director of Addiction.

Does greater access to alcohol mean greater likelihood of abuse and harms resulting from its consumption?

It’s complicated.

Canada’s patchwork of provincial liquor laws makes it difficult to measure. The country’s been inching toward liberalization — from the…