Photo 117599632 © Antonio Guillem | Dreamstime.com

By Alessia Proietti

Similar report findings

Red Deer city council to reach out to province for update on recovery-oriented system of care

Dec 13, 2022 | 5:19 PM

Red Deer city council says they will be reaching out to the province to understand what progress has been made toward building a recovery-oriented system of care regarding addictions and homelessness.

At Monday’s meeting, the City stated the Government of Alberta is best positioned to develop concrete steps towards a recovery-oriented system of care for municipalities to implement.

As a result, council approved contacting the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Nicholas Milliken and Minister of Seniors, Community and Social Services Jeremy Nixon as well as directing administration to continue their work with the Systems Leadership Team and the Red Deer & Area Substance Use Coalition. Council also approved bringing forward a request in the 2025 Operating Budget to facilitate local dialogues on the subject and funding to revise the Alcohol & Drug Strategy or similar document to render it more action-oriented.

Mayor Ken Johnston brought a notice of motion in September to build Red Deer as a recovery community, following a report by the Government titled “Towards an Alberta Model of Wellness”.

READ: Red Deer city council approves resolutions towards addictions recovery approach

REMEMBERING CPL. A. J. ST. GERMAIN

RDP hosts guest speaker for Indigenous Veterans Day

1h ago

no injuries

Investigation into incident at wind turbine in east-central Alberta

1h ago

lest we forget

Remembering the 187th Central Alberta Battalion

2h ago

Administration was requested to bring back an update on Dec. 12 regarding the following:

• Integration of a recovery-focused approach into City operations
• Partnerships with community agencies around a recovery-focused approach
• Working with the Government of Alberta to advance recovery-focused initiatives for the community
• Working with the community to help Red Deerians embrace recovery across the health and wellness continuum of care, in the pursuit of individual and community health, safety, and well-being

The City’s Safe & Healthy Communities Supervisor Ryan Veldkamp stated the province’s leadership is necessary to fund local initiatives, time and resources for the complex work. One example referenced was the upcoming 75-bed Recovery Community funded by the Government in the city’s north end.

READ: Premier Kenney cuts the ribbon on Red Deer Recovery Community

In October, the provincial government released another report titled “Recovery Oriented Housing Model” by the Coordinated Community Response to Homelessness Task Force. The City says both reports align with their own Community Housing and Homelessness Integrated Report from 2019, and many other prior local documents, with similar findings such as:

• Multi-sector approaches are needed to address the multiple needs that many individuals experiencing chronic homelessness face
• Recovery-oriented wraparound supports from substance use are essential
• Access to addictions and mental health services remain limited
• Affordable and supportive housing options remain limited
• The global pandemic has intensified challenges and increased demand on the homelessness sector

Veldkamp also said that defining the term “recovery” was important to understand next steps in the system.

Administration also offered the option to create a Red Deer Recovery-Oriented System of Care Ad-Hoc Council Committee and allocate $175,000 in one-time funding to enable a proposal call for a consultant to assist in revising the Red Deer Alcohol & Drug Strategy or similar document.

Councillors like Bruce Buruma, Kraymer Barnstable and Victor Doerksen questioned if there was a way to create more immediate action rather than information gathering.