VIHA FAILING ADDICTED, MENTALLY ILL

Re: "Time for action on homelessness," editorial, Aug. 19.

The cogent and accurate editorial highlights the difficulties of
helping the homeless and the addicted in Victoria.

I recently resigned as the Vancouver Island Health Authority's
clinical director of psychiatric emergency services (based at the
Archie Courtnall Centre) largely because of long-standing
frustrations with a VIHA administration that has, as the editorial
put it, "clearly failed" in providing adequate services for one of
the most maligned and neglected sub-populations in our society.

The administrators of mental health and addictions are seriously out
of touch with the clinical realities and needs of the addicted
population and, especially, those patients who have both addictions
and severe mental illness.

The staff of the psychiatric emergency service struggle daily to
provide even the most basic medical and psychiatric care for this
suffering population and they do so with little support and the
pitiful resources provided by VIHA, resources which, even by
so-called "Third World standards," are entirely inadequate.

The Archie Courtnall Centre, designed as a resource for all
psychiatric patients in crisis, has become the default processing
centre for addicted individuals seeking treatment. In many cases,
this treatment is available only on the mainland. I find it a little
odd that we get more support from detoxification and rehabilitation
centres outside of VIHA than in it. It is also interesting to note
that volunteer services in Victoria are far more helpful, insightful
and reliable than the designated VIHA services.

VIHA officials will tell you that they have "plans." To this I say,
"The emperor has no clothes." Having spent hundreds of thousands of
dollars (VIHA will not divulge the exact amount) to have an American
"expert" come and "educate" us about addictions, I have seen
absolutely no improvement of consequence in our services.

The degree of obfuscation and frank incompetence is startling. I
suggest that the public of Victoria, working with concerned community
organizations, go about fundraising to establish resources for
addictions, resources which would include halfway houses and
residential treatment programs.

VIHA has no real will and no real resources to do so.

Dr. Anthony Barale,

Victoria.