SUSAN A TEAM PLAYER FOR SUBSTANCE ABUSE

Many people realize Alberta has a drug problem, with cocaine trading
in downtown Lethbridge and drug dealers gunned down in Calgary.

Not so many realize there are serious efforts, right here in
Lethbridge, to reduce the harm caused by substance abuse of all
kinds. But now a group of front-line agencies is responding to those
issues and Susan Canning says the new Community Substance Abuse
Response Team is part of a new, province-wide initiative.

"Lethbridge is a good place to live," says Canning, manager at the
Alberta Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission here. "We want to work
closely as agencies to make sure we don't have the same problems in
Lethbridge that some communities like Fort McMurray are experiencing."

That's why Canning and her staff have been working with nearly a
score of Lethbridge-area organizations over the last few years to set
up the response team. Its role was outlined earlier this week -
Addictions Awareness Week across Canada - and hockey fans will learn
more about additions and the local response team during the
Lethbridge Hurricanes game Saturday.

Lethbridge-area people will hear more about the team, she adds,
through ongoing projects like "Sober Check Stop" where volunteers
will hand out information to drivers who don't attract police
officers' attention during the seasonal stops.

"When you have a number of agencies working together, you can do so
much more," she adds.

While Lethbridge has more addiction-related agencies than many
communities, Canning says the city faces many of the same challenges
as others when it comes to substance abuse. Nor is it the first to
put together a response team.

"There are about 50 coalitions formed across the province now,"
including teams in Taber, Fort Macleod and Claresholm.

Canning says the first were formed several years ago in central
Alberta communities facing a particular concern: crystal meth.

"When crystal meth comes in, it has huge impacts on the community," she says.

Schools, businesses and law enforcement agencies suddenly see those
impacts, she points out.

"It hits quickly," Canning says. "It's ugly. It's not like alcohol,"
which may take many years to become a problem for some people.

What's more, she says crystal meth (like some other drugs, including
crack cocaine) can cause users to become very aggressive.

"That's very hard for the family to deal with," and for emergency
responders as well.

While meth hasn't become the most-used street drug in Lethbridge,
Canning says cocaine is second only to cannabis when it comes to
availability downtown. While police enforcement is part of the
community response, Canning says education - starting at elementary
school level - is another tool in reducing abuse.

Treatment and harm reduction are the other "pillars" in the response
team's program, and Canning is looking forward to new youth treatment
facilities opening here next spring. Meanwhile, she's hoping to see
more response teams formed in southwestern Alberta.

Youth and parents are welcome to join the response teams, she adds,
with more information available from her (at AADAC, 381-5183) or from
response team co-chair John La Forest at South Country Treatment
Centre, 329-6603.

And while it's not really a "substance," Canning says response team
members are all too aware of the dangers posed by gambling,
especially for young people. With high-stakes poker on TV and online
gambling readily available, many more Albertans could become addicted.

"It could explode."