Pubdate: Mon, 06 Jul 2009
Source: Province, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2009 Canwest Publishing Inc.
Contact: http://www.canada.com/theprovince/letters.html
Website: http://www.canada.com/theprovince/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/476
Author: Elaine O'Connor, Staff Writer

ADDICTS SEEKING HELP FACE BARRIERS

If more detox and treatment is the answer, it's not an easy one.
Ramping up B.C.'s system will take political will, a commitment to
long-term funding of facilities and consensus on where to put them.

When beds are available, their location may not be where users are
likely to succeed. Many centres are located in or close to "Canada's
largest open drug market." A B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS
study found injection drug users who left the Downtown Eastside were
more likely to find stable housing, inject drugs less frequently and
contract HIV at a lower rate.

But detox beds anywhere are limited, and in a city where intravenous
drug users number in the thousands, the new beds being added (see
figures at top of page) are a drop in the bucket.

"Right now, 50 per cent of the kids who want help don't get it,"
because there are not enough beds, says Anna Jones, director of the
Downtown Eastside Youth Activities Society.

Nor is that the only barrier to success. Jones says detoxing addicts
should be paired with community workers -- mentors to help them set up
housing, volunteer work and jobs -- otherwise, left to navigate the
system on their own, they risk failure.

Another problem? Jones says some recovery houses are just in it for
the money. She wants to see recovery houses come under government
licensing and inspection regulations.

"I want to see more focus on helping people redevelop their lives. You
have to have choices for people."

There's no one solution, but many addicts think recovery is more
likely outside the Downtown Eastside. In the Treadmill of Addiction
study (see main story), 59 per cent of users said they would take
treatment if available and 65 per cent said facilities should be
outside Vancouver to help them stay away from the lifestyle. But new
detox centres outside the Downtown Eastside are a hard sell.
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MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr