Pubdate: Thu, 10 Jul 2008
Source: Coast, The (CN NS)
Copyright: 2008 Coast Publishing
Contact:  http://www.thecoast.ns.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3170
Author: Tim Bousquet
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)

DRUG DETOX PROGRAMS SHUT DOWN

Addiction detox services in the HRM are closed for the  month of 
July, leaving hundreds of addicts with no  place to turn for help.

Local addiction detox programs are closed for the  entire month of 
July, leaving hundreds of addicts with  no immediate place to turn.

"The choice wasn't ours," says Tom Payette, director  for district 
addiction and treatment services for  Capital Health, which operates 
the only detox programs  in HRM, at Nova Scotia Hospital in 
Dartmouth. "Capital  Health made the decision that this building 
needed decommissioning, so we had to shut down our  operations."

Detox programs were conducted in the deteriorating  Simpson Hall 
building on the hospital campus. They'll  re-open in August in the 
nearby Purdy Hall, which  likewise is set to be torn down.

"Ideally, we'd have a permanent home built for  functional 
programming, designed for our needs," says  Payette, expressing 
frustration for the move to another  sub-standard building. "I've 
been here 25 years, and  we've had six different buildings [housing 
detox services] torn down."

About 200 people each month request detox services,  says Payette. 
"We can only handle 85 to 100 of those."

The now-closed in-patient facility consisted of 15  beds. Clients 
were admitted "just long enough to make  it medically safe for the 
person in the withdrawal  process," explains Payette.

Alcohol withdrawal might take five days, cocaine  withdrawal seven to 
nine days and opiate withdrawal up  to 12 days.

Because the in-patient program couldn't meet the demand  for 
services, addiction and treatment services has been  offering a "day 
detox," where an addict can come in for  about an hour each day, get 
medically checked and given  whatever detoxification drugs are 
necessary. The day  program is geared towards those with 
long-term  withdrawal issues (withdrawal from valium can take up  to 
six months) and those who have competing time  demands---Payette 
mentions mothers with child care demands and people holding down jobs 
as examples.

Both the overnight in-patient program and the day detox  are closed 
for the month.

"It means people are in a difficult situation," says Payette.

Addicts can call 424--8866 to arrange treatment at one  of the seven 
other detox sites in the province---in  Lunenburg, Yarmouth, 
Middleton, Pictou, Springhill,  Sydney and Richmond---but Payette 
admits that may not  often be practical. Those facing immediate 
medical  situations should go to the closest emergency room, he  says.

Asked why the move from one building to another  couldn't be 
seamless, made without cutting services,  Payette says it was 
scheduled for July, the month with  the fewest requests for 
treatment, and that he'd prefer  to have "just one major disruption 
instead of a bunch  of little ones."

The move will take two weeks, as equipment and supplies  are removed 
and reinstalled. Payette is using the  closure to take an additional 
two weeks for staff  certification upgrades. Besides the annual 
renewals in  certifications in life saving, suicide prevention and 
the like, many employees will be trained in auricular 
acupuncture---placing five needles in each ear.

"We already do over 1,000 treatments a month," Payette  says of 
auricular acupuncture. "[The addicts] go  through relaxation 
exercises while receiving it, and it  helps with withdrawal." By 
making the procedure more  readily available, more addicts will be 
encouraged to come to the clinic, he says.

At the same time, addiction services are moving to a  broader, 
community-wide model of addiction treatment  imported from Britain 
that hopes to head off addiction  before people need detox services.

The new system will have both a Dartmouth and a Halifax  "community 
team" that works with people as they're  developing addictions.

"I can tell you that all the money we've been given,  we're still 
only dealing with 10 percent of the people  out there that have a 
problem," says Payette.

"Therefore, it's not having an impact on the prevalence  of substance 
abuse harms done in the community. We're  just Band-Aiding things. We 
need to rethink the way  we're delivering services, so that we have 
an impact on  people who are starting to show signs, so they don't 
progress to a point where they need medical services."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom