U.K. SHOWS THE WAY IN ADDICTIONS

Re: "Paying for addictions," Feb. 7.

The editorial rightly draws attention to the serious problems
affecting investment in addiction treatment here on Vancouver Island.

There are two issues: The inadequate health-care resources reaching
addiction services and the lack of strategic management to deliver a
comprehensive plan.

Spending on such services is important not just for the individuals
who need help, but for all our sakes.

Many studies, particularly the 2002 National Treatment Outcome Study
in Britain, have shown that for every dollar spent on services, three
dollars in savings come back from reduced crime and health costs.

Here on Vancouver Island, we are not investing enough in the
expansion of successful projects and the opening of new ones.

We also need clearer strategic management. The Vancouver Island
Health Authority faces many pressures on all sorts of health issues.

We could learn much from the English experience. In the 1990s, many
parts of England faced the same problems as Vancouver Island in
responding to the increase in drug dependency.

The government recognized the size of the challenge called for a
fresh approach. It set up a special health authority -- the National
Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse. Its sole remit was to ensure
that every locality was providing effective drug treatment services
and the full-range of "evidence-based" treatments to those who needed them.

The agency was empowered to set quality standards. In return,
providers received unprecedented investment in expanding existing
services and developing new ones.

This long-term strategic management, combined with the necessary
investment, made a dramatic difference. In eight years they turned
the situation around.

Comprehensive services are now available with minimal waiting, making
a difference not just to the lives of drug users themselves, but also
their communities and their families.

Such an undertaking could deliver so much here on Vancouver Island.
We cannot wait any longer.

Bill Nelles,

Addiction Counsellor,

Qualicum Beach.