FUNDING GRANTED FOR YOUTH DETOX PROGRAM

A $1.9 million grant for Fraser Health will provide funds for a home
detox pilot program for youth in Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows. "The hope
is that it will be ready to go next month," Simrita Johal-Virk of
Fraser Health said of the pilot program.

Originally, it was to begin in February.

Fraser Health is to receive $1.9 million of a total $8 million
announced by the Ministry of Health on Thursday for youth addictions
and crystal meth treatments.

How much of that will go towards the local initiative is still
unknown, Johal-Virk said.

The health authority is still deciding how much to invest in the youth
detox program and others in the region, as well as where to place six
new youth outreach workers.

The home detox will be a one-year pilot program that's the first of
its kind in the Fraser Health Authority. A home detox program is
already under way on the Sunshine Coast.

In home detox, youth will be able to cleanse themselves of
drug-related toxins at home. "We know from studies that some people
will recover more effectively in a familiar home environment,"
Johal-Virk said.

"Substance withdrawal doesn't have to take place in a centre."

At the same time, "this model is not about locking someone in their
room."

For an individual to qualify for home detox, an assessment must first
be done to determine how likely it is that home detox will work, as
well as to find out what the individual's specific needs are and the
level of help that will be needed.

The criteria of the assessments will ultimately vary between
individuals, though there will be some standardization.

Part of the assessments that will be done will involve determining
whether the individual's home environment is suitable to support the
detox process.

If home life hampers the process, a treatment facility may be
recommended instead.

Treatment at home may make detox beds more readily available for those
who need treatment in a designated facility, though freeing up
existing spaces is not the intent of the program, Johal-Virk said.

Cheryl Ashlie, chair of the Substance Misuse Task Force, has said that
previous incarnations of home detox programs for youth in other
communities have not always been successful.

A steering committee is being formed to guide the local program along,
which Johal-Virk said will involve the Substance Misuse Task Force and
other community groups.

Fraser Health is also consulting with the Sunshine Coast program for
input and direction.

For more information about other detox programs visit,
http://www.drug-rehab.ca/britishcolumbiadrugrehab/MapleRidge_drug_rehab_centers.htm
or call 1-877-A-LIFE-4U.