Values

… that there is hope and people living with mental illness get well, stay well for long periods of time and can do the things they want to do with their lives.

… mental health is essential to the development and realization of every person's full potential and is fundamental to achieving a healthy, balanced and productive life.

… all people have the right to be heard and treated with dignity, respect, compassion and free from stigma and prejudice.

… it’s vital to promote community understanding of mental illness, plus tolerance and acceptance of people living with a mental illness.

… the goal of treatment is recovery, and it is important for those with a mental illness to be an integral part of their recovery process – decisions, programs, support groups, medication regimens.

… we fulfill our mission most effectively when we collaborate with others and when we actively look for partners to achieve our goals.

… mental health should not be treated differently than physical health.

… everyone should have access to a full array of high quality, community based, culturally competent, integrated mental health services, regardless of their ability to pay.

… in innovation and evidence-based service, practice and programming and commit to advocate for this in our community.

… those living with a mental illness, along with their families are unique and essential participants in providing advocacy, services, education, and training.

… the impact of racism, sexism and other structural oppressions negatively affect mental health, and we commit to speak out against these oppressions even when it is challenging to do so.

… in designing our partnerships and our work in ways that do not reinforce structural oppressions, but create new models for shared power and co-creation.