MAYOR GIVES DRUG PROGRAM HEAD AN EARFUL

Maple Ridge is ahead of the game when it comes to addiction services,
but according to Mayor Gord Robson, it's still not enough.

Andy Libbiter, Director of Mental Health and Addiction Services for
Maple Ridge and Langley, informed council on Monday morning that
"other communities are already looking here with some envy" when it
comes to addictions treatment.

"Compared to other communities, a lot of money is coming into this
community," Libbiter said.

"Many communities would kill to have the Matrix Program."

The new drug treatment program specializes in the treatment of crystal
methamphetamine use, and it is just one example of how ahead of the
pack Maple Ridge has become, Libbiter said.

Robson, however, wasn't impressed with the facts and figures presented
by Libbiter.

"This is absolutely disgusting. I'm hearing, everyday, calls from
people who are desperate," he said, suggesting he's routinely told
about people jumping out of windows "and standing in front of trains."

And when people call him for help, he said, he's faced with a near
impossible task of getting them the services they require.

Robson said he's been trying to find a spot for one addicted resident
in the Maple Cottage detox centre, which accommodates 25 clients and
is now slated to move to Surrey next year, but to no avail.

"For the last six days we've been trying and the waitlist is in the
hundreds."

He said that in order to stay on the waitlist, a person must call the
Cottage twice a day.

Libbiter, however, countered that in fact the wait list for the
treatment facility is sitting at 77.

"There are not sufficient resources. Everybody working in the field at
Fraser Health are working as hard as they can," he said.

Robson suggested that addicts are treated differently when they
present at Ridge Meadows Hospital Emergency Room.

"They're patched up and sent out the door," he charged.

"They're causing the health department millions of dollars. We seem to
patch them up and send them out

But, said Libbiter, it's not that easy to treat people who arrive at
the ER intoxicated.

"Not everybody by any means can be or will be admitted," he said,
often times, he explained, patients will refuse drug treatment.

But Robson wasn't buying it.

"You're downloading this on us ... the hospital and the health
services are contributing to the problem."

Marika Sandrelli, who is heading up the newly established Matrix
program, was also on hand at Monday's meeting and suggested that if
Robson is having difficulty finding resources for individuals who
contact him then he should call her.

The program, she said, works as a dispatch centre and will respond
quickly on evenings and weekends.

"I haven't got calls from you," she told the mayor. "That's what we're
there for."

Coun. Al Hogarth said the blame for the rising number of addicted
individuals lies directly with the provincial government for cutting
back 1,200 psychiatric beds at Coquitlam's Riverview Hospital.

"The problem that I see is that we're trying to put a Band Aid on a
major problem.

"We have to get these people back into proper care. They're the ones
that are at increased risk, therefore we have a problem with crystal
meth."

At the end of the day, Robson said, the Fraser Health Authority is
facing an insurmountable problem.

"You're dealing with an uphill battle and I don't think you're going
to win it.

"The government is throwing hundreds of millions toward a problem they
created."