The new addictions treatment centre at St. Joseph’s Hospital is now open, and already more than half of the beds for patients receiving care are now occupied.
The centre held its grand opening in mid-September and officially opened on Oct. 6; the opening itself couldn’t be acknowledged due to the blackout period associated with the Oct. 26 provincial election.
St. Joseph’s CEO Greg Hoffort said they admitted five patients when the centre opened earlier this month, and more have been arriving since. About a dozen patients are currently receiving treatment.
“Our goal is to continue a slow, phase-in until the full funded occupancy, which is 20,” Hoffort told the Mercury.
It was never their intention to have all 20 patients receiving care at the centre on the opening day.
The 12 patients come from across Saskatchewan, including the southeast region. The addictions centre specializes in crystal meth, and some of the patients now in Estevan are recovering from crystal meth addiction.
“Crystal meth is the prevalent addiction of the clients we have right now,” said Hoffort.
He expects to reach the capacity of 20 within the next month.
As for staffing, the last of the 15 positions should be filled before the end of the month. All of the counsellors and the treatment centre manager have already been hired; nursing and attendant staff still have to be hired.
The renovations to the area that houses the treatment centre were completed earlier and were on time, he said. Some furniture still has to be moved in before the project is finished.
“It’s a very warm and home-like environment that we’ve created, as much as you can within an institution,” said Hoffort. “We’re really pleased with how everything turned out.”
The program also has four pre-treatment and six post-treatment beds. The latter won’t be used until the first patients are ready to move on from the treatment centre.
“That will be 30-60 days down the road, depending on the length of time of their individualized program,” said Hoffort. “At that point, we’ll be looking at the post (treatment) beds that we were also approved for.”
Since it opened, there have been challenges associated with having a new facility, but everything has gone very well thus far.
“We’re pleased with the partnership we have with Cedars at Cobble Hill, and we’re very pleased as well with our new staff. They’re really motivated staff to make a difference,” said Hoffort.
Since the treatment centre doesn’t ever take a break, it means that patients will have to be here over the Christmas break to receive treatment.
The Government of Saskatchewan announced in March it had committed $1.55 million in the 2020-21 budget and $1.95 million in annualized funding to establish the new treatment centre. This funding will support the addictions treatment beds, with 15 beds dedicated to people recovering from crystal meth addiction, five beds for people seeking treatment for other addictions, four pre-treatment and six post-treatment beds.
The centre has innovative protocols in medication use to support crystal meth treatment that can be applied provincially. As clients will come from across the province to access services, they will be connected to follow-up care in their home communities once they complete treatment.
The St. Joseph’s Hospital Foundation was tasked with some fundraising to help cover the costs of furnishings before the centre opened.
