Backgrounder

About The Government of Canada Investment of $10 Million for Treatment Services for Vancouver’s Downtown East Side

The Government of Canada is working with the Province of British Columbia and the City of Vancouver on plans for a transitional abstinent-based treatment service for concurrent disorders. This new service will include the creation of new recovery beds. These transitional beds will offer a stable environment for the most marginalized and disadvantaged women in Vancouver, those involved in the sex trade, and will also incorporate an Aboriginal cultural approach.

This women-only service will provide post-withdrawal stabilization, focusing on mental health, addiction and healthcare. The length of stay will be 6-9 months and will help to prepare the women for their transition into supported housing and/or long-term residential treatment programs. 

Plans are also underway to put in place an Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) team of professionals that can provide pre- and post-treatment care for clients from these and other treatment beds who require continuing support in the community.  

This ACT team will work specifically with women with severe concurrent disorders, including sex trade workers and the Aboriginal population.  It will be integrated with community-based mental health and addictions organizations, such as the Burnaby Centre for Mental Health and Addictions, which provide other types of services.

This team will offer:

• a multidisciplinary staff of approximately 12 members representing the fields of     psychiatry, medicine, nursing, therapy, and rehabilitation;
• 24/7 service capacity for 70-75 clients with the most severe functional impairments, who do not access traditional mental health and addictions services;
• tailored care plans;
• support to clients to help them to connect with mainstream services over time, so   there is an ongoing uptake of new clients assigned to the team;
• mobile services to deliver care in the community; and,
• a commitment to long-term care for and frequent contact with clients.

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