HELP LINE REACHES OUT

Help in dealing with addictions is now more accessible for
Sarnia-Lambton residents.

Addiction Assistance Service now has a 24-hour, toll-free number which
offers support to those living in southwestern Ontario who are in
distress due to substance abuse.

The hotline, which is operated in association with Westover Treatment
Centre, of Thamesville, has been available to residents of
Chatham-Kent for six years.

Recently, additional funding from the province has allowed the service
to be extended to areas including Lambton County, said Ron Paterson,
Addictions Assistance Service co-ordinator.

"Any time there's new money being spent on addictions it's good news,"
he said. "It's so underfunded it's unbelievable. Only .2 per cent of
one per cent of the (provincial) health budget goes toward treatment
of addictions."

The service is staffed by qualified addiction counsellors, said
Paterson.

"Sometimes people just want to talk to someone, sometimes they need
more immediate help," he said, adding the hotline is available for
anyone who has a problem with alcohol or drugs, "as well as any family
member who suffers because of addiction."

Typically, Paterson said, the client is assessed over the phone,
offered options of treatment services available and directed to the
nearest location for that treatment. If immediate withdrawal
management (detox) is required, the counsellor will arrange for a bed
in either London or Windsor and, if needed, transportation is provided
by a trained volunteer driver.

Paterson said it is hoped the service will help to alleviate some of
the barriers to treatment for single mothers, youth, the elderly and
rural residents unable to access treatment on their own.

Until now, Lambton residents have had to "find their own way to get to
withdrawal management," said Paterson. Many addicts would have been
assessed only if they were hospitalized, and transportation to London
or Windsor might have been a barrier to treatment.

Paul Stebbins, senior counsellor at Bluewater Health's Addiction
Services, confirmed that has been the case in Sarnia-Lambton.

"Some people might have gone to the hospital and been admitted. Others
might have called AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) and received some guidance
through them," said Stebbins.

"But, because we don't have withdrawal management services in Lambton
County, a lot of people just wouldn't bother. Even if they knew about
the facilities in London or Windsor, they had no way to get there.

"Now there is a way," said Stebbins. "This is a very important
development for this community."

Paterson said Sarnia, being a border city, has significant drug
issues. And, like most cities, Sarnia has its share of problem drinkers.

More addictions lead to more crime, he added.