Pubdate: Thu, 01 May 2008
Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON)
Copyright: 2008 The Ottawa Citizen
Contact: http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/letters.html
Website: http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/326
Author: Joanne Laucius
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)

TREATMENT CENTRE CLOSER TO HOME

'It's Gonna Happen,' Region's Health Chief Says Of Two Facilities For 
Drug-Addicted Youths

The Ottawa area will be getting two residential drug treatment 
centres for youth between the ages of 13 and 17, says the chief 
executive of the Champlain Local Health Integration Network.

The long-awaited plan, which will goes before the health network 
board for approval on May 28, calls for a 15-bed residential facility 
for English-speaking youth on the west side and a separate five-bed 
facility for francophone youth on the east side.

The program already has strong support from the province, the city 
and police Chief Vern White, Dr. Robert Cushman said in an interview 
yesterday. "It's gonna happen."

As it stands, there are no residential treatment facilities in the 
region for youth under the age of 16. Some addicted young people are 
sent to Thunder Bay and even farther away for treatment.

Community leaders have been pushing for a youth residential facility 
for about 20 years and a handful of plans have never come to 
fruition. In June 2006, for example, then-mayor Bob Chiarelli said he 
would ask fellow councillors for support to buy the former Rideau 
Correctional Centre near Burritts Rapids and convert it into a 
treatment centre. The proposal never coalesced.

The treatment centre, as outlined yesterday, is scaled down from 
earlier plans, which called for as many as 48 beds. The most recent 
report, delivered only last month, considered a 28-bed model.

Dr. Cushman said the new model is even smaller because the centre 
can't sacrifice quality. Research shows that the best residential 
programs result in a success rate of up to 80 per cent. This is what 
the Champlain region should aim for, he said.

That means the program must invest in the best interventions and 
staff and have supports in the community for youth when they return 
home from the residential program.

"You don't just want to parachute these kids back into the 
community," said Dr. Cushman. "It's better to start with a few beds 
and do it right and build it over time."

Although there has been no cost suggested for buying or renovating 
facilities to house the centres, the cost of running the residential 
program is estimated at more than $2 million a year, which would come 
from health network's budget for addictions and mental health.

The health network is considering a Carp Road facility as the 
west-side location. The building is currently used by the Royal 
Ottawa Health Care Group as the Meadow Creek adult addiction centre, 
but the program is scheduled to be moved into Ottawa this summer, 
said Dr. Cushman.

The youth program is to accept about 80 teens a year, each for a stay 
of about 90 days. Dr. Cushman estimates that triple that number of 
addicted teens would benefit from a residential program.

Pauline Sawyer, executive director at the Alwood Treatment Centre, 
said the residential facility with 14 beds for 16- to 22-year-olds 
near Carleton Place has a waiting list that is three to six months long.

"There's a huge need for beds for those 16 and under," she said. 
"We've been waiting for this for 15 or 20 years."

Mike Beauchesne, executive director of the Dave Smith Youth Treatment 
Centre on Bronson Avenue, said there may be considerable pent-up 
demand for the program because nothing like it has been available before.

He has sent teens as far away as Manitoba for treatment, which he 
admits is not an optimum solution because they are so far from their 
families. "We're seeing kids come through the door who commence use 
at 12 or 13 years of age."

While the number of beds in this proposal is smaller than the 
original plan, the important thing is that the centres are being 
established, he said.

"I can't say at this point that it is a fait accompli," said Mr. 
Beauchesne. "It looks good. I'm not ready to pop the champagne yet."

Dr. Cushman says youth addiction has been the "orphan" of health 
care. Although he can't explain why little has been done about 
establishing a residential program for drug-addicted youth, despite 
decades of effort, he says he should be held responsible for his term 
as head of the health network.

"What we're doing is building a foundation. We want to build from there."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom