Latest news with #ConnectiveSupportSociety
Global News
3 days ago
- Health
- Global News
Involuntary treatment facility in Maple Ridge, B.C. could take 1st patients this month
British Columbia's first involuntary treatment facility for people who are not in the criminal justice system will begin accepting patients as early as this month, the province says. The Alouette Homes facility in Maple Ridge is equipped with 18 beds and will take patients with 'severe and persistent mental-health disorders, often combined with other challenges, such as addictions and brain injuries, which may impact their behaviour and ability to interact safely with others,' according to the Ministry of Health. 1:43 B.C. government announces new involuntary care beds, opposition says it's not enough Patients will have to meet the criteria for involuntary treatment under the Mental Health Act. Story continues below advertisement 'We want to ensure people are getting the right care, especially when they are unable to make that decision for themselves,' Health Minister Josie Osborne said. 'These beds are a vital part of government's work to build a continuum of care that works for everyone.' The facility, which is being operated in partnership with Vancouver Coastal Health and the Connective Support Society, could be transferred to the homes this month, according to the ministry. Dr. Daniel Vigo, B.C.'s chief scientific advisor for psychiatry, toxic drugs and concurrent disorders, called the facility a 'first-of-its-kind' service in B.C. The homes will provide patients with individualized treatment and psychosocial support in a 'home-like environment,' he added. 'Before these homes, there was no housing alternative for them, due to the extreme complexity of their mental and substance-use disorders, so they were stuck in high-security hospital units indeterminately.' Get weekly health news Receive the latest medical news and health information delivered to you every Sunday. Sign up for weekly health newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Vigo said the facility is designed to accept people who have been receiving long-term treatment in hospitals, and who have reached a point of stability that is 'still unmanageable by a supportive housing or by any other form of care.' 'Now they can live here in a humane manner,' he said, getting one-on-one treatment so that 'at some point they can aspire to scale down.' 4:47 B.C.'s chief scientific adviser on changes to involuntary care guidelines In April, the province announced a new involuntary treatment centre in the South Fraser Pretrial Centre, which will focus solely on people who are already in the justice system. Story continues below advertisement The province says it is also working to add mental health beds at hospitals around the province, which could accept patients for involuntary treatment. In March, the province released guidelines for when doctors can prescribe involuntary treatment. The 11-page guidance document lays out a trio of scenarios under which someone can be treated involuntarily under the Mental Health Act, all of them involving mental impairment. The law does not, otherwise, permit doctors to use involuntary treatment to stop someone's 'risky decision-making or override the person's harmful or self-harmful behaviour.' There have been growing calls to expand the use of involuntary treatment as the province grapples with ongoing drug and mental health crises, along with growing public pressure about street crime and disorder. BC Conservative public safety critic Elenore Sturko said the 18 beds announced Tuesday were 'very inadequate when it comes to the scope of people and the number of people who currently need to have more supportive care under the Mental Health Act.' 'This is a drop in the bucket compared to the number of resources that we need, I don't think that it goes far enough,' she said. 'And again, these are beds that rely upon someone being certified under the Mental Health Act to get this type of care, but we see time and again that there are people who need this kind of care and are not certified under the Mental Health Act.' Story continues below advertisement Sturko argued the province needs new legislation that will allow it to impose involuntary treatment on people who are a danger to themselves of others, specifically as a result of drug addiction. 'We know that 18 beds isn't going to cut it,' she said. Vigo acknowledged that people who have not been certified under the Mental Health Act won't receive involuntary treatment in B.C. 'Nor should they,' he said. 'Folks who don't have a severe mental illness, a severe addiction and a severe acquired brain injury that puts them above the threshold of sec. 22 of the MHA do not receive involuntary care in the province, they have voluntary care options.' He also responded to concerns about oversight of the treatment, given that patients are potentially being held against their will. He said that oversight will be provided by the B.C. Review Board and that patients will have rights advisors. 'My office is working very closely with physicians across the province to ensure we are using the Mental Health Act correctly in a therapeutic manner, which is what is intended,' he said. 'And the province has a very robust system of safeguards to ensure people who are receiving care under the act have their rights protected and are not receiving care that is inappropriate or unwarranted.' Story continues below advertisement Federal Health Minister Marjorie Michels said Tuesday there is no evidence that forcing people into addicitons treatment works, but that she would not intervene in the province's decisions about the practice. More to come…
Global News
09-05-2025
- Health
- Global News
Province to build supportive housing for people in Nanaimo
The B.C. government announced it is building housing for people experiencing homelessness in Nanaimo. The province, through BC Housing, is providing approximately $32 million to deliver the spaces across three sites: 50 new units at 1300 Island Hwy. S., operated by Connective Support Society 59 new units at 1030 Old Victoria Rd., operated by Vancouver Island Mental Health Society 78 renovated units at the Sparrow, 1298 Nelson St., operated by Pacifica Housing 'Bringing people indoors is the first step toward stability for people who need it, and is key to strengthening our communities,' Ravi Kahlon, minister of housing and municipal affairs, said in a statement. 'That's why we're providing more temporary housing units with vital supports for people in Nanaimo. Homelessness is a tough challenge, but we've been doing the work and we're starting to make real progress helping people move indoors.' Story continues below advertisement 1:02 Former B.C. Conservative candidate claims her car was intentionally set on fire People who have been staying in overnight shelters will have priority access to the spaces and are expected to move into 1300 Island Hwy. this spring, the province said. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'Move-ins at the other sites will begin in summer 2025. All sites will have individual units, shared amenity spaces, meals and laundry services, on-site staff 24/7, one entrance, and referrals to community programs essential to the health and wellness of residents.' The province also said it will provide new permanent supportive housing to help support people after the eventual closure of temporary sites. A rezoning application has been submitted for approximately 60 units at McKenzie Avenue, adjacent to the 1030 Old Victoria Rd. temporary housing site. 'Without housing, no person can have a healthy life,' Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog said in a statement. Story continues below advertisement 'The partnership with the city set out in the HEART and HEARTH MOU means that over 200 people are going to have a safe secure place to live where they can better their own lives and move beyond the misery of living in the streets.'
CBC
12-03-2025
- Health
- CBC
Yukon health minister expresses confidence in shelter operator amid calls to end its gov't contract
The Yukon's minister of health and social services expressed her continued trust in the Connective Support Society on Tuesday, amid calls for the territorial government to end its contract with the organization. Connective has been running the Whitehorse emergency shelter at 405 Alexander St., along with the housing units above it, in partnership with the Council of Yukon First Nations since 2022. Its contract was set to expire at the end of the month. However, the Yukon government has extended the deal to the end of June. Last April, a coroners' inquest examined the deaths of four women at the shelter. There have been a number of deaths at the shelter since. These deaths have prompted loved ones and the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyäk Dun to demand that Connective be fired. "Any deaths or serious incidents where people are injured is not acceptable," Tracy-Anne McPhee, the health minister, told reporters after Question Period on Tuesday. "But Connective are experts in their field. They are. And they deserve our confidence as well," she said. "What they do is commit to this community.… They've committed to bringing their expertise and to assisting the individuals at the shelter." McPhee said the non-profit organization has also committed to improvement and that extending its contract was to ensure stability. "The risk of changing a vendor at this time, or an operator for 405 Alexander is a risk to real people," she said, adding that Connective could "likely" still be running the shelter in three months. The minister said the short-term extension includes stronger oversight, operational improvements and enhanced accountability measures to improve safety. The issue of oversight was what the NDP's Annie Blake wanted to better understand. "What does that mean for the government or who's going to be responsible for having that extra oversight with Connective running the shelter for an additional three months?" asked Blake, who represents the Vuntut-Gwitchin riding. McPhee said as part of its transfer payment agreement with Connective, the Yukon Government is required to monitor and ensure its goals for the shelter are met. In mid-April, the government is set to host a summit with Yukon First Nations governments. That summit will be for developing a long-term sheltering strategy, including how to improve the programs and services at 405 Alexander. That summit could also include discussions about the facility's approach to harm reduction, specifically the level of accommodation for alcohol and substance use. Currently, the shelter operates on a "low-barrier" model, which Yukon Party Leader Currie Dixon said needs to change. The party has repeatedly blamed the shelter's "permissive" policy on intoxicants as a key contributor to problems like crime and public nuisances. Dixon called for changing to a "higher-barrier" model, though specifics would need to be ironed out with stakeholders. "The way that the shelter is working right now is not serving the best needs of Yukoners. It's not serving the needs of those who are clients of the facility," Dixon said.
CBC
11-03-2025
- Health
- CBC
Yukon government gives Whitehorse shelter operator three-month contract extension
The Yukon government has extended its contract with the non-profit organization that runs the Whitehorse emergency shelter for an additional three months. The announcement comes as one First Nation is decrying "repeated Indigenous deaths" at the shelter and calling for the non-profit, the Connective Support Society, to be fired — a call echoed by family members of a woman who died there in December. Connective's current contract for 405 Alexander St., including both the emergency shelter and the long-term housing units above, was set to expire at the end of the month. However, the Yukon government announced in a news release Monday that it would be extended until June 30. The release says that the government will work with Connective, the Council of Yukon First Nations (CYFN) and First Nation governments "to refine the long-term framework for shelter and housing services, improve culturally relevant programming, safety and on-site services" over the additional three-month period. It also says the government will organize a summit "to identify how the model can change inside 405 Alexander to better meet client and community needs." "This short-term extension ensures the continued delivery of critical shelter and housing services for these and other vulnerable Yukoners as we determine long-term solutions for this critical service," the release says. The Yukon government would not make anyone available for an interview Monday. Connective, in partnership with CYFN, took over shelter operations from the Yukon government in October 2022. The building was previously run by the Salvation Army from its opening in 2017 until 2019. The property has since been plagued by controversy, including over the growing number of people who have died while using shelter services or visiting residents in the housing units. The Yukon Coroner's Service held an inquest held last April after four First Nations women died at the shelter within the span of 15 months, with the jury issuing eight recommendations. At least three people died at 405 Alexander in the months following the inquest's conclusion, two of them within a two-week span in December. Among them was 21-year-old Carmen Melancon, who died Dec. 30 of a suspected overdose in a long-term housing unit at the shelter. Her death and the ongoing impact on her community prompted her First Nation to call on the government last week to fire Connective, "without further delay." "These repeated Indigenous deaths are unacceptable, and they need to stop now," the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyäk Dun (FNNND) said in a statement. "Connective is out of chances." The statement was strongly supported by Melancon's family, including cousin Karen Nicloux. Nicloux, who had urged the government to not renew Connective's contract, said in an emotional interview Monday that she was "very disappointed" to learn that the government had, in fact, extended it. "I'm so sad because I just keep thinking, 'How many more have to die?'" she said. "How many people are going to die in the next three months?" Nicloux, who has worked with shelter users, said she wanted to issue a challenge to CYFN and Yukon government officials, including the premier, to visit the shelter unannounced. "Dress down, walk into the shelter in the evenings and see what goes on for yourself," she said. "Walk around the backyard. Walk through the dining hall, walk through the TV room, and check the bathrooms.... Enough is enough."
