TORONTO, Canada:

An extraordinary gift of $5 million from G. Raymond Chang, chancellor of Ryerson University and chair of CI Financial, will go towards furthering research and education about the treatment of mental health and addictions, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) Foundation announced on Wednesday.

"CAMH is conducting world-leading research into mental health and addictions with pioneering gene science and advanced brain imaging, combined with clinical expertise," said CAMH Foundation President and CEO Darrell Louise Gregersen. "This gift will help us achieve the goal of ensuring that those experiencing mental health and addictions receive the best care possible.

"We are thankful to Mr Chang, not only for his generosity, but for standing up and showing his leadership in supporting mental health and addictions," she said.

Research initiative

Chang's gift will help CAMH achieve its goal of raising $15-million from the private sector for a major research initiative, funded in part by the Canada Foundation for Innovation. The gift will support a $38-million project that will enable CAMH to focus on research in key areas, including: schizophrenia, mood disorders, addictions, community health and knowledge exchange, neuroimaging, pharmacognetics and neuroscience. CAMH is among the top three research centres in the world in the combined field of brain imaging and genetics.

"There have been significant advances in treatments for people living with mental illness and addictions, but there's still so much to learn," said Catherine Zahn, incoming president and CEO, CAMH. "In the past, therapies have been identified by trial and error rather than through an evidence-based understanding of the complex factors leading to these conditions.

"Today, research at CAMH is changing the way we treat mental health and addictions. The impact will not only be within our facilities and our local community but also nationally and internationally."

After touring its facilities, Chang was moved to support CAMH. He said: "Unlike physical ailments, mental-health issues are difficult to see or understand, making it easy to turn away in ignorance. And in many respects support for mental health has been left behind.

"As a result, there is a lot of catching up to do in research and education. I greatly admire those affected by mental-health issues who have stepped forward to tell their stories, among them Harry Rosen, Valerie Pringle and Michael Wilson."

Largest institutional grant in CAMH's history

Chang's gift is the first to support the matching Canada Foundation for Innovation grant, the largest institutional grant in CAMH's history, which will fund the internationally recognised research being undertaken by CAMH.

The combined donations will support the most ambitious fund-raising campaign ever undertaken in Canada for mental illness and addictions. The CAMH Foundation's Transforming Lives campaign aims to raise $100 million to redevelop its antiquated facilities.

The redevelopment will mean that state-of-the-art clinical care, research and education will be interspersed with neighbourhood amenities such as parks, retail outlets and a healthy mix of uses and activities.