Supporting equitable access to legal and regulated psychedelic medicine for all Canadians.
ABOUT OUR WORK
Working with partners in government, business, and the community, MAPS Canada is committed to advancing psychedelic medicine by supporting scientific, multidisciplinary research; advocating for drug policy reform; offering public education; and supporting equitable access to legal and regulated psychedelic medicine in Canada.
LATEST AT MAPS CANADA
October, 17th, 2024
MAPS Canada Research Room presents:
The Psychedelic Renaissance in 2024: How did we get here and where are we going?
Thurs, October 17th 8pm EST / 5pm PST
Emma Hapke, MD, FRCPC, is a psychiatrist, psychotherapist and psychedelic researcher at the University Health Network in Toronto. She is the co-founder and associate director of the UHN Psychedelic Psychotherapy Research Group. She has expertise in women’s mental health, the treatment of trauma, psychosocial oncology and psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Dr. Hapke worked with MAPS as the principal investigator for the Montreal site of the phase 3 trial of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD. She is also the co-founder and co-director of the Michener Foundations of Psychedelic Psychotherapy Program. She currently leads research projects on psilocybin therapy for end-of-life distress and caregiver distress, experiential training of psychedelic therapists and surveys of psychedelic use in the community.
September 26th, 2024
MAPS Canada Research Room presents:
Understanding How and Why People Self-Treat Depression and Anxiety with Psychedelics: A Study of Online Discussions
Thurs, September 19th 8pm EST / 5pm PST
Dr. David Kryszajtys is a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, Unity Health Toronto, with a PhD in Public Health Sciences from the University of Toronto. He studies how social and psychological factors—such as personal experiences with healthcare and cultural attitudes—compel people to make certain decisions about their health and use of healthcare. His research reveals important considerations for improving policies and practices that can enhance individual well-being and overall public health, particularly in mental health, addiction, and substance use. Alongside his research on psychedelic self-treatment for depression and anxiety, Dr. Kryszajtys has evaluated harm reduction programs to better support people who use substances. His work has been published in leading journals and presented at conferences worldwide.
July 17th - 21st, 2024
2024 Canadian Psychedelic Summit
Cortes Island, BC
Join us at the Canadian Psychedelic Summit, happening on Cortes Island, BC, from July 17-21, 2024. This gathering is a connective retreat that will bring together a diverse group of Indigenous, grassroots, and sectoral leaders from across Canada to explore a vision for psychedelics in our nation centered around equity and ethics.
Supported by our Community Partner, MAPS Canada and led by facilitator Kim Haxton, the Summit takes place at Hollyhock, on the traditional and unceded territories of the Klahoose, Tla’amin, and Homalco Nations. Join us to center the embodied knowledge of Indigenous peoples, creating space for (un)learning, storytelling, and connection with ourselves, one another, and the natural world.
Partial and full scholarships are available for individuals from equity-seeking communities.
Spots are limited! Register today!
April 24th, 2024
MAPS Canada Presents:
Wisdom From The Psychedelic Underground
Podcast with Rachel Harris
Rachel Harris, PhD, is the author of “Swimming in the Sacred: Wisdom from the Psychedelic Underground” and “Listening to Ayahuasca.” A psychologist who has been in private practice for 40 years, she spent 10 years in an academic research department where she published more than 40 scientific studies in peer-reviewed journals and received a National Institutes of Health New Investigator’s Award. Rachel splits her time between an island in Maine and the San Francisco Bay Area
Visit her online at http://www.swimminginthesacred.com.
And consider donating to MAPS Canada at https://mapscanada.org/donate/
March 26th, 2024
MAPS Canada presents:
Navigating MDMA-Assisted Therapy: From Research to Clinical Practice
March 26th, 4pm PST, 5pm CST, 7pm EST
Join Dr. Scott Shannon (MAPS principal investigator on its Phase 3 MDMA Clinical Trial), and ATMA CEO, Vu Tran to learn more about In-Person MDMA-Assisted Therapy Training, based on MAPS protocols, coming to Calgary in May 2024 as well as ATMA-CENA plans for expanding clinic infrastructure in Canada. With priority review in the US by the FDA and the expected priority review in Canada initiated by Lykos, there is an urgency for both training and clinics to be ready for legalization.
The FDA recently granted Lykos Therapeutics (formerly MAPS PBC) a priority review on their New Drug Application (NDA) for MDMA, allowing for a shorter review period of 6 months vs the 10 months conventional review period. The FDA could grant Lykos MDMA approval for therapy as early as August 2024. The rescheduling MDMA could be another 3 months from FDA approval but it’s likely MDMA-assisted therapy (MaT) will be available to some individuals before the end of 2024. Training and clinic infrastructure to provide MDMA-assisted therapy is quickly becoming the priority to focus on to make this treatment accessible in both the US and Canada.
The expectation is that Lykos will take a similar path of requesting a priority review to Health Canada for a New Drug Submission (NDS) upon approval from the FDA. Although legalization for MaT in Canada will be behind the US, we could likely see Health Canada approval early to mid 2025.
Join Reverdi Darda, MAPS Canada Board member, in discussion with Dr. Shannon and Vu Tran as we discuss these exciting and rapidly-unfolding developments in psychedelic assisted therapy in Canada.
*Recording will be available for 30 days after the event for the same email address that was used to register
Learning Objectives
- Learn about the specifics of MDMA-Assisted Therapy Training utilizing the MAPS Protocol
- Learn about how clinics prepare for MDMA-Assisted Therapy
- Hear practitioners’ perspectives on what the path towards legal MDMA-assisted therapy may look like in Canada
- Hear practitioners’ perspectives on how the rollout of MDMA-assisted Therapy may look in Canada
Dr. Scott Shannon, (MAPS principal investigator on its Phase 3 MDMA Clinical Trial)
Scott has been a student of consciousness since his honor’s thesis on that topic at the University of Arizona in the 1970s. Following medical school, MDMA assisted psychotherapy became a facet of his practice before this medicine was scheduled in 1985. He then completed a psychiatry residency at a Columbia program in New York. Scott studied cross-cultural psychiatry and completed a child/adolescent psychiatry fellowship at the University of New Mexico. Scott has published four books on holistic and integrative mental health including the first textbook for this field in 2001. He founded Wholeness Center, the largest integrative mental health center in the US, in 2010 with a group of aligned professionals to create innovation in collaborative mental health care.
Scott is a past president of two national medical organizations. He serves as a site Principal Investigator and therapist for the Phase III trial of MDMA assisted psychotherapy for PTSD and for the Phase IIB trial of LSD for generalized anxiety disorder. He has also published numerous articles about his research on cannabidiol (CBD) in mental health. Scott co-founded the Psychedelic Research and Training Institute (PRATI) to train professionals in ketamine-assisted psychotherapy and deliver clinically relevant studies. Scott helped to initiate the Board of Psychedelic Medicine and Therapies in 2021. He lectures all over the world to professional groups interested in a paradigm shifting perspective about transformative care.
Vu Tran, ATMA CEO
Vu is a student of plant medicine, has his yoga instructor certification and also 20 years of experience as a strategic investor and successful entrepreneur. He believes in pursuing a balanced life of business ambition with life giving work, that which nourishes the human spirit.
Vu is a life long entrepreneur and has founded, scaled and exited multiple ventures in a variety of markets including real estate, land development, hospitality, entertainment, retail and cannabis. Whether owned, led or partnered with, he has created a combined enterprise value of over $60M from all his ventures to date. As a result of his own experience and work, Vu is deeply involved with and passionate about what psychedelic medicine can bring to Canadians suffering with mental health issues.
MAPS Canada's SAP CoP Committee presents:
The Special Access Program Tip Sheet
Our SAP Tip Sheet is now live! Learn how you can access Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy (PAT) through Health Canada’s SAP program. You can find tips and templates to streamline your application process!
MAPS Canada School of Psychedelics
The MAPS Canada School of Psychedelics provides education to promote safe, legal, and equitable access to psychedelic medicines. The school provides programs for everyone from clinicians and researchers to policymakers and to anyone interested in learning more about psychedelics.
BALANCING SAFETY AND ACCESS REPORT
Please read our report on Alberta’s Regulations and service standards, and related recommendations.
