We’re proud to share the 2024–25 CAMH and CAMH Foundation Annual Report—a reflection of another extraordinary year. You’ll find stories of impact, innovation and growing momentum across our hospital and community. We hope you feel equally proud of what we’ve built together and inspired by what comes next. Let’s keep moving toward a future where no one is left behind.
IMPACT
Our collective impact begins at CAMH and extends far beyond our walls. By transforming our Queen Street campus and breaking down barriers to care, we help people to get the support they need, when and where they need it.
More than buildings
In 2024, CAMH marked major milestones in our redevelopment journey with the naming of two landmark buildings: the Temerty Discovery Centre, supported by a historic $75-million lead gift from the Temerty Foundation, and the Waverley House Secure Care & Recovery Building, named in recognition of a $203-million gift from Bruce McKean and the Waverley House Foundation. These are more than just buildings. They are symbols of what is possible when people believe in and invest in better mental health care for everyone.
Transforming the patient experience
CAMH aspires to change how people experience mental health care at our hospital and in our communities.
Fighting food insecurity with dignity
With support from donors, the Gifts of Light Food Pantry Project expanded from four to 19 stocked pantries, reaching more than 1,800 patients this year. Designed to be low-barrier and high-trust, this model removes stigma and provides patients with access to culturally relevant and nutritious food items.
“We don’t have a lot at home, so bringing snacks helps me study.” -CAMH youth client
A new front door for mental health support
Launched in 2023, the Virtual Urgent Care Clinic is Canada’s first hospital-based digital urgent mental health service. It has now supported over 1,000 people, helping to divert hundreds from emergency departments and opening new pathways to care.
“This is so convenient. I don’t have to skip work.” -Virtual Urgent Care Clinic patient
INNOVATION
At CAMH, innovation means asking better questions, listening deeply and designing solutions that reach more people, more effectively. Through groundbreaking research, care models co-created with patients and families, and strategic partnerships, we’re building better mental health care for everyone.
From discovery to delivery
CAMH research redefines what effective, accessible mental health care can look like— whether through scalable therapy models or promising new treatments for complex conditions.
Improving maternal mental health care
One in five pregnant or postpartum people experience depression or anxiety—but fewer than one in ten receive care. The SUMMIT trial, co-led by CAMH Senior Scientist Dr. Daisy Singla, is the first study to show that talk therapy can be delivered just as effectively by nurses, midwives and doulas as by specialists like psychiatrists and psychologists. The study, published in Nature Medicine, comprised more than 1,200 participants from across North America and also found that virtual sessions work as well as in-person. These findings point to a clear and scalable way to break down barriers to access and close gaps in maternal mental health care.
"Talk therapy is effective but largely inaccessible. Leveraging simple, pragmatic solutions like task-sharing and telemedicine has the potential to transform health care—and lives.” -Dr. Daisy Singla, Senior Scientist, CAMH
A potential breakthrough in early Alzheimer's treatment
CAMH researchers have developed a new experimental drug that restored memory and reversed brain cell damage in preclinical models of Alzheimer’s disease. GL-II-73 targets disrupted brain signalling—a root cause of cognitive decline—and strengthens neural connections, sometimes after a single dose. The discovery, more than a decade in the making, is now moving to human trials through CAMH-founded biotech start-up Damona Pharmaceuticals.
Leading in digital mental health care
This year, CAMH bolstered our strength in the cutting-edge area of digital mental health care—combining innovation with equity, system thinking and global collaboration:
- A new hub for digital innovation: CAMH launched the Digital Innovation Hub for Mental Health to fast-track the design and rollout of digital tools in both clinical and community settings. Led by Dr. Gillian Strudwick, the Hub brings together researchers, clinicians and technologists to scale data-driven solutions that meet real-world needs.
- Expanding digital equity in remote communities: As the newly appointed UArctic Chair in Public Mental Health and Community-Centred Digital Innovation, Dr. Allison Crawford is deepening CAMH’s work with Arctic and Indigenous communities—co-developing digital mental health tools that reflect community priorities and cultural leadership.
- Harnessing the power of AI to improve care: Dr. Tristan Glatard was named the inaugural BMO Financial Group Chair in Artificial Intelligence and Mental Health, thanks to the support of BMO and the Krembil Foundation. As Chair and Scientific Director of the Krembil Centre for Neuroinformatics, his work is accelerating how CAMH uses AI to develop predictive tools that translate complex clinical data into timely, transparent and equitable care decisions.
"Digital health must reflect the voices of the people it serves. We are designing systems with—not just for—communities.” -Dr. Allison Crawford, Psychiatrist & Medical Director of Virtual Care, CAMH
Innovation through partnership
CAMH partners with hospitals, communities, people with lived experience and families to build a more connected system where mental health is health.
One year of 9-8-8
In late 2023, in partnership with the Government of Canada, CAMH led the launch of 9-8-8, Canada’s national suicide crisis helpline. The life-saving service offers trauma-informed, culturally affirming support—in English and French—24 hours a day, seven days a week. It’s there for anyone thinking about suicide or worried about someone they know.
Since then, responders have answered more than 300,000 calls and texts, offering immediate help, finding ways to ensure safety and creating space for connection when it’s needed most. National, provincial, territorial and local partners—alongside CAMH—are the backbone of 9-8-8. Together, we are building a coordinated system that puts people first and saves lives.
Care close to home
In 2025, CAMH and Lakeridge Health launched a first-of-its-kind partnership to transform mental health care in Durham Region through a replicable model of academic and clinical excellence. The goal: to deliver accessible, high-quality care close to home by better integrating hospital and community services.
Lakeridge Health sees more than 100,000 adult mental health visits, 12,000 child and youth visits, and 14,000 emergency department visits related to mental health and substance use each year. This collaboration will strengthen mental health supports, create clear pathways to care and support people on their path to long-term recovery.
"Partnerships like this are a key driver of our Connected CAMH strategic plan. We are bringing our clinical, research, and education expertise together with Lakeridge Health’s breadth of clinical expertise and deep community roots, to improve access to integrated care in Durham and beyond.” -Sarah Downey, President & CEO, CAMH
MOMENTUM
At CAMH, momentum comes from people, communities and partners driving change together. This year, it showed up in calls for equity, shifts in policy and practice and supporters turning belief into action.
Creating space for belonging and awareness
AMANI: A new chapter in Black youth mental health
This year, CAMH and the Black Health Alliance launched AMANI: Mental Health & Substance Use Services for Black Youth—a reimagining of the long-standing SAPACCY program into a province-wide network rooted in Africentric, anti-racist and trauma-informed care. Named for the Swahili and Arabic words for “peace” and “wishes,” AMANI supports youth aged 12–29 through therapy, navigation and family support across eight community and hospital sites.
With $11 million in federal and provincial funding, the model now includes consultation teams to improve transitions between hospital and community care, and training in racial trauma-informed practices for providers. AMANI is Canada’s first hospital-community partnership of its kind—and a national example of what culturally affirming care can be.
Shaping a stronger mental health system
A better mental health system starts with the right foundation. CAMH improves how care is designed, supported and sustained through evidence, innovation and strong partnerships across sectors.
- Scaling what works: In 2024, CAMH helped secure two major government investments to expand care across Ontario and Canada. With $15 million in federal funding, CAMH is leading the new Integrated Youth Services Collaboration Centre to help provinces and territories build one-stop hubs for mental health, substance use, housing, education, employment and more. At the same time, Ontario committed $19 million to expand NAVIGATE—CAMH’s gold-standard model for care coordination and supporting patients and families in early psychosis care—to more than 50 sites across the province. Both initiatives bring timely, integrated care to more young people and their families, closer to home.
- Turning data into direction: CAMH continues to lead the Ontario Student Drug Use and Health Survey—the longest-running study of its kind in Canada. The 2023 findings, released this year, revealed sharp increases in anxiety, self-harm and suicidal thoughts among youth. This data is more than a snapshot—it’s a call to action that helps governments, funders and care providers respond quickly and invest where it counts.
- Training the system to respond better: CAMH’s Education team is preparing providers and the public to meet mental health needs with skill and confidence. A virtual reality simulation, developed at the CAMH Simulation Centre, teaches people how to recognize and respond to opioid overdoses, and a new partnership with the University of Toronto is scaling its reach. Another immersive module strengthens suicide risk assessment skills through realistic patient scenarios—bridging the gap between knowledge and practice.
Moving forward together
Every story in this report is a reminder of what’s possible when we work in partnership—across disciplines, communities and systems. Together, we’ve expanded access, advanced discovery and built better mental health care for everyone. But we're not done yet.
The momentum is real—and it’s growing. Thank you for standing with us as we move toward a future where no one is left behind.