Investment in harm-reduction facilities pays off

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/09/2019 (1824 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

THUNDER BAY, ONT. — Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister last week laid out the plans for “100 actions” in his first “100 days” in office.

Most were predictable, well-known election promises, such the 2020 tax rollback plan and increasing punishments for individuals who “endanger public safety and wildlife populations by illegally night hunting.”

Some were vague, such as “planning the reconstruction of the St. Boniface emergency department” and “continuing to advance the elimination of interprovincial trade barriers.”

Absent though was the largest issue in the provincial election besides health care: addiction and public safety.

Winnipeg and large swaths of Manitoba are in the midst of an opioid crisis. Addictions to methamphetamine, alongside oxycodone, morphine and codeine — especially those laced with fentanyl — are killing Manitobans and leading to crime and public safety issues.

Alcoholism is also a huge problem; a June 2018 report from Manitoba Health reported 53,000 Manitobans struggle with problematic alcohol use.

There are more Manitobans addicted to drugs and alcohol than any time in this province’s history — and it’s impacting all of our lives.

During the recent provincial election campaign, Winnipeg Police Service Chief Danny Smyth announced meth addiction was the cause of an increase in property crime and a “tremendous strain on police and paramedics and our hospital emergency departments.”

Meanwhile, a 2018 report from the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction called alcoholism the most “expensive substance” in Canadian society, costing nearly $15 billion per year in lost productivity, crime, and health costs. In addition, alcoholics access hospitals and emergency rooms five times more than the average citizen.

Addiction is not only dangerous but expensive, too. So why does the provincial government seem to not want to do anything about it?

During the campaign, Pallister promised a $20-million plan focused on treatment, education, and enforcement. It included a commitment for a detox facility for 20-30 individuals, recovery “drop-in” centres, school curriculum for substance prevention, and $10 million for police drug units, downtown foot patrols and security cameras, and rewards for turning in drug dealers.

Pallister’s plan uses words such as treatment and education, but the real money and attention is in the enforcement. He’s focused primarily on the symptom of addiction: crime.

The issue is: addiction is about trauma. No one chooses to be a meth addict or an alcoholic. People become addicted while dealing with painful experiences, memories, or mental health challenges.

Having worked for decades with addicts, the one thing I know is no matter upbringing, socio-economic status or opportunities, the root cause of addiction is escape. Drugs and alcohol are medications for trauma, whatever it may be.

The key to helping addiction, therefore, is to engage the pain, not punish the symptom.

This is what harm-reduction facilities are all about.

I spent Monday at Shelter House, a health facility that provides basic needs to people living in poverty in Thunder Bay, Ont.

Its Kwae Kii Win managed alcohol program has been running since 2012. Intended for homeless, chronic alcoholics who have failed at rehab and detox programs, it gives addicts six ounces of alcohol (usually wine) every 90 minutes from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. to “manage and regulate their alcohol consumption.”

Staffed by two support workers and a program co-ordinator, they encourage clients to access mental health support and discover the root cause of their addiction. Most clients are Indigenous, whose addictions relate to cycles of physical and sexual abuse, identity, childhood trauma, and life on the streets.

For clients like Russell from White Dog First Nation, the program led him to manage his addiction and stabilize him so he could find a job, a place to live, and a future.

Nora from Bearskin Lake First Nation, who was addicted to non-palatable alcohols including hand sanitizers, hairspray, and mouthwash, started drinking at the age of 10 to cope with trauma. Now, she talks about this trauma with counsellors and has re-connected with family.

The results of the Kwae Kii Win program are incredible. A 2019 University of Victoria study of the program says there was a 37 per cent reduction in hospital admissions, 54 per cent reduction in ER use, and 42 per cent less police contact.

The biggest impact might be in the cost savings. The study also said for every dollar spent in the Kwae Kii Win Centre, taxpayers saved an additional 10 to 20 cents because clients didn’t use ERs, police, and paramedics.

This means an investment in safe consumption of addiction represents a 10 to 20 per cent investment in other services provided.

So, why does the Manitoba government seem to not want to do anything about it?

niigaan.sinclair@freepress.mb.ca