Hello everyone. My name is Michael Uzenko and I am 24 years old. I am a hardworking, new grad from McMaster University who for the past 5 years, has suffered with my mental health. Unfortunately, I have many diagnosed ailments, such as Depression, Social Anxiety and Panic disorder .Recently, my situation escalated, leading to two emergency room visits within one week unfortunately suffering from suicidal thoughts, something I am not proud to say. What I encountered was not just mentally draining, it was disorienting, inconsistent, and at times, deeply distressing. The whole scenario was traumatizing. I waited for over 5 hours until somebody had a brief chat with me and sent me on my way, admitting the resources were not there to keep me to get the help I need. I did get a referral sent, but these things take time which many of us do not have while in these states. I am still struggling every single day. I try to help it, but still am slipping everyday but when I was in that room I said to myself I want to try to make a change. I understand budgets and limitations, but we need better health supports in place for people like myself. Men especially are scared to admit they need help, which is why sadly, men make up most suicides. I could have been apart of that statistic and I am hurting every day at that selfish feeling.

Unfortunately my situation is not unique, but sadly identifies the barriers Ontarians face when needing urgent mental health support. Ontario has made commitments through its Roadmap to Wellness, a 10-year, $3.8 billion plan to improve mental health and addictions care. While progress has been made in some areas, critical gaps remain particularly for individuals in crisis.

The Issue

Through my lived experiences, I have identified 3 main issues I want to address:

Access is fragmented and confusing: Many people, like myself, do not know where the best place is to get help. This confusion, at least in my case, made me feel bad for using up the limited resources my local ER has. 

Wait times and lack of capacity: ER’s are not best equipped to deal with urgent, mental health crises’. In my case, I waited hours in an unsanitary, quite frankly scary room until I got to speak with somebody, for only a few minutes before I was sent on my way. I was not checked on and I feel this not only poses a risk, but also can isolate an individual making the support they are after ineffective. 

Inconsistent Care: Both trips to the ER were at two different Hospitals in Hamilton. The first time around, while the staff were as accommodating as possible, did not have the right staff on hand to assist me. The next hospital I went to did have better resources but could still not provide the support I needed. 

What I am looking to achieve

Through my Petition, I would love to sit down with the Honourable Sylvia Jones, Minister of Health and share my experience and report and understand the steps our provincial government is taking to strengthen our mental health system.

Better Mental Health Triage systems: when evaluating a person in crisis, while the standardized triage steps are still important, crisis assessment needs to be more proactive. You simply can not take a one size fits all triage method for mental health patients. 

Increase in specialized staffing: With mental health issues only becoming more relevant, we need to invest in strategies to encourage, educate and train students and staff so we have enough support to cover at all times, not just peak hours. 

Foster a safer, more appropriate environment: my experience left me terrified. To be quite honest there has been a moment where I needed to go back, but was left uncomfortable after being placed in the room I was in. While I understand that some people in crisis can be violent and damage equipment, myself, along with others do not have this intention. If we need to wait for hours for support I believe we need better environments to create an unnecessary spiral. 

Create pathways when appropriate: oftentimes there is a correlation between mental health and addiction issues. However in my case and several others, this is not true. These two illnesses are not interchangeable and patients deserve care that reflects their specific needs. 

Strengthen the workforce and staff retention: I work in healthcare myself. I know the constraints healthcare workers are under. Ontario must invest in their well being, training and plans for retention long term

My Goal

I studied Political Science and McMaster University. I have not yet had my chance to apply my thinking into the policy field, something I am passionate about. This petition is designed to look to advocate and collaborate with those in power. Through my lived experience, I hope to make a difference for those who do not feel they have a voice.

My Commitment

I promise to continue to fight for people who may not have the strength to. So many of us know of somebody who has passed away due to suicide, it is truly terrible. I have a long term plan of what I want to achieve, but in the short term, I will be running Hamilton’s Around the Bay 10 K race and in May, will be participating in the Toronto Half Marathon in support of CMHA Toronto. This will not only test my mental strength but my physical as well. I also suffer from Degenerative Disc Disease, making this race much more difficult. However I want to help show people in my situation that you can do it. Believe me, I know how hard it is to WANT to do something but mentally cant. 

I hope that my story can resonate with people. I am not doing this for myself, but to contribute even a 1 % difference into somebody's life.  If you or a loved one are open to sharing your experience to help drive meaningful mental health policy change, please contact me at uzenkm@gmail.com. 

The link to the marathon fundraiser  https://raceroster.com/events/2026/106978/2026-toronto-marathon/pledge/participant/44595559 . My motivation is not monetary, but to fulfill my purpose by helping contribute to people being happy.