WOMEN'S DRUG TREATMENT FUNDING WELCOMED

Stonehenge Community May Get Operating Cash As Well, Mpp Says

GUELPH -- In handing over a cheque for $106,794 to the Stonehenge
Therapeutic Community -- money that will be used to furnish a new
women-only drug addiction treatment facility in Guelph -- Guelph-Wellington
MPP Brenda Elliott hinted there could be more money to come.

"I know it's not a lot," said Elliott of the one-time capital funding from
the Ministry of Health and Long-Term care, "but I'm pretty sure operating
funding will be coming along too."

Administrators and members of the board of directors all breathed a sigh of
relief at receiving the money, which was presented at the Westwood Road
facility Friday.

It had long been their dream to open a drug addiction centre dedicated to
treating women only.

Their current facility on Hwy. 24 between Guelph and Cambridge, established
in 1981, is co-ed.

"Treatment for men and women is completely different though," said Jennifer
Myles, clinical director of Stonehenge.

She told of one female client trying to kick a crack addiction, who entered
the programme while she was pregnant with her fourth child.

"She gave birth while in the programme and staff were her birthing
partners. She came back and completed the programme and is doing really
well right now," Myles said.

It's success stories like that that earned Stonehenge the nod of approval
from the Ministry of Health, Elliott said.

"We want to help people so they can help themselves, not just keep them on
welfare," Elliott said.

The philosophy of Stonehenge is to teach life skills to residents at the
same time as tackling the bigger issues around addiction. Residents clean,
do laundry, cut grass and shovel snow in addition to the group and
individual counselling they receive.

"On a basic level, everything around them must be in order to get their
lives in order. So hygiene, putting dishes away and doing laundry are all
part of the therapy," Myles explained.

"When you immerse them in that for six months, it's a good start."

It's also a good start for their children and that will be the next phase
of the women's programme -- to add cribs and child care so women with kids
won't be separated from them.

"Some women don't get help because they are afraid of losing their kids to
Family and Children's Services. Also it's hard to be apart from their
children for six months," explained Steve Pierce, executive director.

Women are coming to the Guelph location for some of their sessions already
but Stonehenge expects to have the residential component up and running in
the fall.