Lecture:
Dr. Megan Davies: The Inmates are Running the Asylum: Stories from MPA
On Tuesday, January 14, 2014 the University of Winnipeg History Department, The Riley Fellowship in Canadian History and the University of Winnipeg Oral History Centre presented, The Inmates are Running the Asylum: Stories from MPA. A documentary about a group that transformed Canada’s psychiatric landscape. A panel, featuring Dr. Megan Davies, professor of Health history and producer of the documentary(York University) , Prof. Karen Clements, professor of Psychiatric Nursing (Brandon University), and Nigel Bart founder of Artbeat Studios and consultant for Opening Minds, discussed the film, lessons of the MPA, and the current state of the mental health system in Canada.
The Riley Fellowship in Canadian History promotes the study and dissemination of Canadian history. This fellowship is awarded annually to a scholar or scholars of Canadian history interested in pursuing and sharing their interest in the study of Canada with the faculty and students at the University of Winnipeg and interested members of the community. The Department of History, University of Winnipeg is responsible for selection of the Riley Fellows and the administration of the programme.
Funding for the Riley Fellowship in Canadian History is made possible through a generous endowment from Sandy Riley of Winnipeg who is an enthusiastic student of the history of Canada. He is a former Chancellor of the University of Winnipeg and a vigorous supporter of Canada’s Natural History Society.
The Inmates are Running the Asylum: Stories of the MPA screening at the University of Winnipeg on Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 was followed by a panel discussion.
Vancouver’s MPA (Mental Patients Association) was formed in 1970-71 as a grassroots response to deinstitionalization and tragic gaps in community mental health.
Inverting traditional mental health hierarchies, the group put former patients and sympathetic lay supporters in charge.
About this Recording:
THE INMATES ARE RUNNING THE ASYLUM: Stories from MPA.
A documentary about a group that transformed Canada’s psychiatric landscape.
Vancouver’s MPA (Mental Patients Association) was formed in 1970-71 as a grassroots response to deinstitionalization and tragic gaps in community mental health. Inverting traditional mental health hierarchies, the group put former patients and sympathetic lay supporters in charge. MPA provided homes, work and a sense of belonging and self-determination to ex-patients.
Dr. Megan Davies is a social historian of health who teaches in the Health & Society program at York University, Toronto and a part time resident of Hornby Island, BC, allowing her passion for the history of the province to flourish. In addition to her involvement with collaborative educational and research website projects associated with the History of Madness website, she does research and writing on marginal/alternative health discourses and practices, rural health, food and health, old age, and state health and social welfare provision
About this Recording:
Dr. Megan Davies gave a lecture at the Oral History Centre at the University of Winnipeg about the Inmates are running the asylum: stories from the MPA documentary project on Wednesday, January 15, 2014. Davies spoke about the making of the MPA documentary, the project’s value to Canada’s psychiatric community and the value of participatory oral history projects.
Dr. Megan Davies is a social historian of health who teaches in the Health & Society program at York University, Toronto and a part time resident of Hornby Island, BC, allowing her passion for the history of the province to flourish. In addition to her involvement with collaborative educational and research website projects associated with the History of Madness website, she does research and writing on marginal/alternative health discourses and practices, rural health, food and health, old age, and state health and social welfare provision
The Inmates are Running the Asylum: Stories from the MPA Lecture
About this Recording:
The Inmates are Running the Asylum: Stories of the MPA screening at the University of Winnipeg on Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 was followed by a panel discussion. The panel discussed the film, lessons of the MPA and the current state of the mental health system in Canada. The panel featured Dr. Megan Davies (York University) professor of Health history and producer of the documentary, Prof. Karen Clements (Brandon University) professor of Psychiatric Nursing and Nigel Bart founder of Artbeat Studios and consultant for Opening Minds.
