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PORTUGAL
treatment to decriminalization
NEWS of drugs for personal use, led
CRIME to a dramatic drop in overdose
Province suing deaths and drug use. A12-13
gangsters for
cars, cash A4
ECONOMY
Budget update
paints a rosy
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WEEKEND
REVIEW
In a weeklong series from Lisbon, Vancouver Sun columnist Daphne Bramham looks at how Portugal has achieved one of Europe’s lowest rates of drug,
alcohol and tobacco use and reduced overdose deaths from an average of 360 a year in the 1990s to just 26 in 2016. GET T Y IMAGES
TODD
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A patient is handed his daily dose of 85 milligrams of methadone by nurse João Matos from a van parked near Praca Espanha in 2017 in Lisbon, Portugal.
The daily methadone program is run by the Ares do Pinhal Association for Social Inclusion. H ORACI O VI L LALOBOS / CORBI S VI A GE T T Y IMAGES
Day 2
In the 1990s, Portugal was in the throes of a national crisis, averaging 360 drug overdose Dissuasion commission aims
to set users straight.
deaths a year in a country of 10 million. Today, it has one of Europe’s lowest rates of
Day 3
drug, alcohol and tobacco use and the number of overdose deaths in 2016 was 26. In Life today for drug addicts in
Portugal.
a weeklong series from Portugal, Vancouver Sun columnist Daphne Bramham looks at
Day 4
the lessons to be learned from the country’s radical approach to addiction treatment. Outreach workers have a
long-term goal.
The only thing that most outsid- can be asked to do community ser- will. I have to help him with his Day 5
ers know about Portugal’s laws is vice or even, eventually, facing a limited capacity to make his own Harm reduction just a piece
that all drugs for personal use are fine, perhaps even having posses- choices. And, step-by-step, the of the puzzle.
decriminalized. But what most sions confiscated and sold to pay ability of the citizen increases.”
fail to understand is that all drugs, the fine. Portugal created pathways to Day 6
other than alcohol and tobacco, re- It’s why Goulão is so quick to health that aren’t punitive. This re- Treatment centres abound;
main illegal. point out that Portugal’s success quired investing in treatment and so do waiting lists.
DA PH N E B R A M H A M If police find you with illicit isn’t because of decriminalization. recovery services and establishing
Lisbon, Por tugal drugs, you’ll be arrested and taken It’s because, in 2001, his country a network that connects citizens Day 7
to a police station where the drugs made a commitment to providing to whatever they need in a timely Applying the Portuguese
Almost every day, foreigners knock will be weighed. If the amount is whatever its citizens need to be manner, whether that’s outpatient model to B.C.
on João Goulão’s door seeking a above the strictly enforced thresh- as healthy and as fully engaged in counselling, time in a detox centre,
solution to their countries’ drug old limits — designed to be a 10- society as possible. even up to three years in a thera- cut spending by 30 per cent in most
addiction problems. day supply for personal use, or 25 “Decriminalization is not a silver peutic recovery community. areas this year. Again, the excep-
Goulão is Portugal’s director- grams of cannabis, five grams of bullet,” he said. “If you decriminal- And it meant that the govern- tion was addictions treatment and
general of drug policy and the cannabis resin, two grams of co- ize and do nothing else, things will ment made a long-term commit- recovery.
architect of its radical approach, caine, or one gram each of ecstasy get worse. ment to ensuring that those ser- “We had cuts of 10 per cent be-
which included decriminalizing all or heroin — you can be charged as “The most important part was vices wouldn’t disappear when the cause we could explain to politi-
drugs for personal use. Among the a trafficker. If convicted, jail terms making treatment available to economy crashed in 2008. cians that to disinvest would cost
pilgrims who have come here are range from one year to 14 years. everybody who needed it for free. One of Europe’s poorest coun- more later on,” said Goulão. “We
philanthropist Richard Branson, If the amount is below the limit, This was our first goal.” tries before 2008, Portugal was es- had to sacrifice some things —
Canadian Justice Minister Jody you’ll be sent the following day to Underlying the policies is a na- sentially insolvent after the global studies, research and surveys. But
Wilson-Raybould and, recently, the Commission for the Dissua- tional conviction that addiction is meltdown. The US$115-billion the health responses and treat-
an army of politicians and policy- sion of Drug Addiction — even if a chronic, recurring disease best bailout from the International ment facilities, we kept them.”
makers from Norway. you’re a tourist. There, you will dealt with through treatment not Monetary Fund and the European It shows how far Portuguese pol-
Fortunately, the former family be interviewed by a psychologist jail. Union came with strings. The gov- iticians, citizens and even bankers
doctor is infinitely patient, as he’s or social worker before appearing “Our approach is based on re- ernment had to increase taxes and have come in understanding what
been answering the same ques- before a three-person panel that spect,” said Goulão. “It’s incremen- cut spending. Yet, the addictions has been accomplished here.
tions for almost 20 years. will offer suggestions aimed at tal. Our system works by asking treatment and recovery services The country’s drug policy has
In the late 1990s, Goulão and 10 stopping your drug use. citizens what he can give at that survived almost unscathed. not only saved lives, it’s saving
others were charged with advising From there, you’re fast-tracked given moment. Helped by a boom in tourism, Portugal money. In the first five
the government how to deal with to whatever services you’re willing “If he is completely dependent, Portugal’s economy is recovering. years, the social costs related to
the 100,000 people — one in every to accept. If you refuse help, you I cannot appeal through force of Even so, its coalition government drug abuse dropped 12 per cent,
100 citizens — using heroin. Over- according to a peer-reviewed study
dose deaths were averaging 360 a in the International Journal of
year in the country of 10 million Drug Policy in 2014.
and Lisbon was called the junkie Within the first decade, the cost
capital of Europe. We had to saving had jumped to 18 per cent.
Goulão was an unusual choice. Those reductions are in the health
He had no training in addictions sacrifice some costs of drug use and overdose
and, rare among Portuguese, no deaths, but also savings to the le-
direct connection with addictions. things — gal system associated with drug-
The closest family connection he related criminal prosecutions and
has to drugs is a niece, who is in studies, reductions in lost income and lost
her 40s and living in a therapeu- production of individuals serving
tic community with schizophrenia research and time in jail for drug offences.
caused by drug use. Of course, that wasn’t initially
As for his four children, “Hope-
surveys. But obvious to many. In 2001, the
fully, none of them will have prob- the health United Nations threatened sanc-
lems.” tions to punish Portugal for de-
Because of its interventions, responses criminalization and some in the
Portugal now has one of Europe’s European Union threatened to
lowest rates of drug, alcohol and and treatment close the borders.
tobacco use across all ages, and The first indication of change
the lowest infection rates for facilities, came in 2002. The left-wing party
HIV/AIDS and hepatitis that are that brought in the changes was
associated with injection drug use. we kept them. defeated, but the right-wing gov-
In 2016, the number of overdose ernment stuck with it because the
deaths dropped to 26 from 40 the João Goulão is the architect of Portugal’s 2001 overhaul of drug policy that first indication of the improve-
previous year. included decriminalizing drugs for personal use. DAPH N E BRAM H AM ments were becoming obvious.
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INDIGENOUS JUSTICE
Gladue reports patchwork at best A8-9
CINDERELLA
SURGERY
Keeping feet
in shape B8
M O N D AY, S E P T E M B E R 1 0 , 2 0 1 8 S E R I O U S LY W E S T C O A S T S I N C E 1 9 1 2
NEWS
CA N NA B I S
Post-secondary
policies gear up
as legalization
draws near A3
L E BA N O N
Mom has few
options after
father abducts
their kids A4
NP Nuno Capaz, vice-president of Lisbon’s Commission for the Dissuasion of Drug Addiction, says Portugal was able to radically reduce drug addiction
by using homegrown solutions that took into account the country’s health care and policing systems. R ICHAR D LAM
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While possession of drugs for personal use is illegal in Portugal, it is no longer a crime. Portuguese police concentrate much more on tracking down traffickers. AFP/GET T Y IMAGES/FILES
Martha May Kahnapace believes a Gladue report, which provided the judge with background on her upbringing, made a difference in her sentence and in her life. GER RY KAHR MANN
T R O U B L E D SY S T E M
But there were problems with
the system, with some defence
lawyers raising objections in court.
Terry La Liberté, an experienced
Vancouver criminal lawyer, had
one Aboriginal client who didn’t
qualify for legal aid and was there-
fore facing a hefty bill to pay for
a Gladue report of his own.
His client had been sexually
assaulted by residential school em-
ployee Arthur Plint.
“This man was actually raped.
A lot of people say, well, yeah, he’s
blaming residential school his-
tory. This guy was a victim right
out front and he would have to pay
for a Gladue report. That is of itself
offensive in the extreme.”
Victoria lawyer Kevin Mc-
Cullough and his colleague, Tim
Russell, have applied for a stay of
proceedings for a client arising
from delays in getting the court-
ordered report.
“The government in this case,
the defence says, farted around
for six months after the court had
ordered a Gladue report. They kept
saying, well, go to Legal Services
and there’s a program to fund it,
they’ll pay for the Gladue report.
And our position has been, no, no, Almost a decade ago the Supreme Court of Canada dealt with a B.C. Aboriginal woman convicted of manslaughter, resulting in a ruling setting out
these are court-ordered reports.” factors that should be considered in sentencing Indigenous offenders. S E AN KI LPATR I CK / THE CANADIAN P R ES S
There have also been some con-
cerns raised by judges about the Gord McVicor, the college’s dean Some travelled from as far away
quality of the reports. of continuing studies. as Thunder Bay, Ont.
Currently there is no accredita- “People couldn’t afford to travel. Jonathan Rudin, director of
tion or certificate required for the Other opportunities came up for the Aboriginal Legal Services in
Gladue writers, which means that people, but all in all seven people Ontario, says his program makes
theoretically anyone can write one. did complete that course.” use of a full-time staff including
A pilot program to train Gladue McVicor said that since the pro- 14 writers whose sole job is to write
writers through Vancouver Com- gram finished, there have been a Gladue reports.
munity College was launched ear- number of inquiries from institu- “Our reports don’t say what the
lier this year, in part to provide tions across Canada that are inter- sentence should be, because that’s
a more systematic approach to the ested in the course. part of our realm. We will do a
writing of the reports. “So we do get these inquiries, but Gladue report for any Indigenous
“We’d like to see the Gladue we’re not really advertising that person facing a sentence of 90 days
writing be an accredited compo- we’ve got this program because or more if it’s requested, ” said Ru-
nent to ensure the quality and we recognize that we’re still de- din, who added the reports were
educational background of those veloping it.” first written in Ontario in 2001.
individuals who are writing those The requirements for the course “If what’s being requested is a
reports,” said David Wells, dean of include Grade 12 English, some sentence of less than 90 days, then
the school of arts and sciences at knowledge of Indigenous cul- our Gladue case workers write Gla-
the college. “We know that there ture and history, knowledge of due letters, which are less lengthy
is a huge shortfall of people able to the Canadian judicial system and and take less time to prepare.” Increases to legal aid will result in an anticipated $500,000 in funding for
write those reports.” awareness of community support Between 400 and 500 reports Gladue reports for Indigenous offenders in B.C. AR LEN R EDEKOP
A total of 15 people started the services. are being written every year by
college’s pilot program, which was The first students in the program the Ontario program. ing a book on Aboriginal justice ly no reports in Manitoba and
free, but only seven completed it included people with various back- “Every year the numbers keep issues, said that Gladue reports are Saskatchewan.
in March. grounds such as Aboriginal justice going up. The demand goes up and being produced in Nova Scotia and “Alberta has a fairly robust pro-
“There were a couple of reasons workers, justice and public safety we have more staff, so we’re able to Prince Edward Island and some in gram but is very different from
why people never finished, like the students, native court workers and serve that demand.” Quebec. ours.”
travel was a bit of a problem,” said social service workers. Rudin, who just finished writ- But he said there are effective- kfraser@postmedia.com
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ADDICTION CRISIS
FORCED COUNTRY
TO TAKE ACTION
Portugal did much more than decriminalize
drugs; it improved treatment and recovery
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HARM-REDUCTION PROGRAM
PROMOTES PATH TO RECOVERY
DA PH N E B R A M H A M
ADDICTION:
WINNING
In the 1990s, Portugal was in the T H E WA R
throes of a national crisis, averag-
ing 360 drug overdose deaths a year Day 1: World comes to study
in a country of 10 million. Today, Portugal’s grand experiment
it has one of Europe’s lowest rates Day 2: Dissuasion com-
of drug, alcohol and tobacco use, mission aims to set users
and the number of overdose deaths straight
in 2016 was 26. In a weeklong Day 3: Life today for drug
series from Portugal, Vancouver addicts in Portugal
Sun columnist Daphne Bramham Day 4: Outreach workers
looks at the lessons to be learned have a long-term goal
from the country’s radical ap- TODAY: Harm reduction just
proach to addiction treatment. a piece of the puzzle
Day 6: Treatment centres
LISBON, PORTUGAL Fado is this abound; so do waiting lists
country’s two-centuries-old mu- Day 7: Applying the Portu-
sical genre that’s characterized guese model to B.C.
by a deep melancholy, longing
and resignation to one’s fate. residential recovery program,
Getting it right requires and to help with other needs as
plumbing the depths of one’s soul well.
to produce the right sounds, the Francisco came here looking
right passion. For guitar player for legal help, which the staff
Francisco, heroin and other helped him get.
drugs helped him get there. His father had died, throwing
“It’s a dangerous life because him into depression that deep-
all of the music is an expression ened as his estranged siblings
of the feelings and sensitivities, tried to claim the house that
so there is a propensity to use Francisco had lived in all his
drugs,” he said. “The drugs made life. His drug use escalated in
me have more sensitivity. They an attempt to salve his pain and
help me with my music. In so grief.
much feeling, it helps me to play As he talked about his father’s
and expand what I play … like death, Francisco wept.
Jim Morrison and others. “Heroin is a drug that is so
“I experimented because I nice that it’s dangerous,” he said.
wanted to see with my eyes or to “One day you wake up and the
get into a mental situation that drug controls you. The first thing
would give me some news about you want to do is go and inject.
feelings that I don’t know. Most … Every day, when I wake up, I
musicians die with drugs, not like think I have come to the jungle
marginalized people, but because (with the danger always lurking) Francisco is a former heroin user who accessed legal services at a harm-reduction and treatment centre, which
they are trying to conciliate these even when I go to the cafe I have led to him accessing more of the centre’s services to stop using heroin. P HOT OS: DAP HNE BR AMHAM
feelings into their work.” a little fear (of relapsing).”
Now 55, Francisco said that With legal help, Francisco But he got much more than Despite those successes,
GAT’s In-Mouraria office saved eventually got sole title to the legal help from GAT. His hepati- Curado is critical of Portugal’s
his life. GAT is a non-profit orga- house. It means that he has some tis C has been cured. By coming drug policies.
nization set up to provide harm- stability in his life though he here, Francisco said his drug use “Portugal is still under a
reduction programs to users like still uses drugs, is unemployed has been reduced to smoking prohibitionist paradigm. Drugs
him. Its graffiti-decorated office and lives on €180 a month from hash occasionally and having the aren’t legal and people are still
is near the heart of Mouraria, social assistance bolstered by odd drink. penalized,” she said, noting that
Lisbon’s medieval quarter of nar- what he makes busking and play- “Coming here creates a kind the police still collect people off
row, cobbled streets lined with ing the odd gig. of competition to get better,” he the streets and give tickets that
houses that were once home to said. require them to go to the Com-
sailors and miscreants, the place Adriana Curado is GAT’s proj- mission for the Dissuasion of
where Fado is believed to have ect co-ordinator, with a doctor- Adriana Curado Drug Addiction.
been born. Heroin is ate in clinical psychology. Although the commission is
GAT does the usual harm- “Harm reduction is about tak- not be available when needed.” supposed to be a fast track to
reduction stuff — providing a drug that is ing care of people regardless of Naloxone is an antidote to an services for those who are willing
needle exchange, free hash pipes, so nice that whether they are using drugs or opioid overdose and has proven to accept help, Curado said, “The
distilled water and citric acid not,” she said. important during Canada’s commission penalizes people
for dissolving heroin, condoms it’s dangerous. The cramped office is filled epidemic of deaths from illicit and I don’t agree with that. …
and testing for HIV/AIDS and One day you with comfortable sofas. There fentanyl. Increased availability It’s not my role or our role to tell
hepatitis. are books that can be borrowed is something that Portugal’s drug people to stop using drugs.”
But, unlike in Canada, harm wake up and and half a dozen loaves of bread policy director Joao Goulao said What she and her organization
reduction here includes much the drug on a shelf. The needles, condoms is under consideration. But both want is full legalization of all
more. It provides a pathway and hash pipes are kept in a he and Curado noted that Portu- drugs, a regulated and legal drug
to substance abuse treatment, controls you. locked, glass counter. gal’s overdose death rate is low market.
either as an outpatient or in a Eighty per cent of those who — 40 in 2016 — and that fentanyl Of course, she added, “One
come here are men over 40 “with has yet to hit this country. country can’t go it alone.”
long careers in drugs” and little Unlike Canada, where harm At GAT, the word addict isn’t
education, Curado said. Most are reduction has been front and used. “It stigmatizes people,”
unemployed or have no formal centre of its drug policies, Portu- Curado said.
job history. gal has put few resources in harm Francisco disagrees.
“We’re working in a context of reduction, instead choosing to He has no problem describing
poverty,” she said, which is why focus on prevention, education, himself as a former addict. It’s a
GAT is lobbying hard for super- treatment and recovery. It has strong word, he said. And strong
vised injection sites for those resulted in a steep reduction words are the only ones that
who have nowhere else to use in injection drug use with the provoke action.
drugs and more availability of number of high-risk opioid users He also doesn’t think super-
naloxone to reverse the effects of now estimated at 33,290, down vised injection sites are a good
opioid overdoses. from an estimated 100,000 in the idea.
Curado admitted there is a late 1990s. “I can understand drugs, but
naloxone kit on site even though An estimated 1.35 million I can’t accept them,” he said.
GAT isn’t supposed to allow syringes a year are distributed “Doing drugs is an illusion
drugs to be injected here. by outreach teams and organiza- because it is a weight on your
“We have it because we are tion’s like Curado’s, and the most soul.
doing civil disobedience,” she recent data indicate that HIV “Don’t use drugs. Don’t drink
said. “We need to have it because diagnoses attributed to injection and you’ll sleep very nice.”
At the In-Mouraria harm-reduction centre, needles, hash pipes, condoms it is a life-saving medication and drug use has dropped to 30 in dbramham@postmedia.com
and other supplies are handed out to reduce risks of drug use. there is no reason why it should 2016 from nearly 500 in 2006. Twitter: @daphnebramham
C H E C K YO U R R AT E : mogo.ca/money
Quinta das Lapas is the former manor home of a marquis. Today, it houses one of 63 therapeutic communities dedicated to the treatment of substance abuse. P HOT OS: DAP HNE BR AMHAM
The long walkway from the the plan set out for them, prefer-
parking lot to the former college ring to continue using methadone
is shaded with mature trees. Farol or illicit drugs, said Vasconcelos.
is a collection of classrooms con- “I don’t believe in forced treat-
verted into dorms and therapy ment,” he said. “It’s unthinkable
rooms. As we walk to the office, to tell a patient what to do. Noth-
we can hear the shouts of resi- ing is mandatory unless the pa-
dents playing volleyball. Like tient puts himself at risk or puts
most people in recovery, 70 per someone else at risk.”
cent of the residents here are men Those who refuse treatment are
ages 28 to 35. told how to get free methadone
The government handed the from a mobile clinic, and that free
buildings over to the Associacao needles, hash pipes and condoms
para o Tratamento das Toxicode- are available from local organiza-
pendencias in 1995, and since The problem is Recovery for us It was a bad tions whose mandate is harm re-
then close to 2,000 people have duction, not treatment.
been treated here. that for a 12- is abstinence idea. It was “Harm reduction is an attitude
Despite the promise of fast step treatment, and giving the very hard on me. based on the idea that I should
pathways to treatment, everyone accept whatever someone else
who winds up here has had to wait. the program is client a differ- I had a very does,” Vasconcelos said.
The waiting list for the 27 beds is very condensed. ent kind of life ... violent reaction. That’s something the psychia-
at least a month. trist firmly rejects.
“It’s not quick to get in,” Farol’s People only get to give them the J O RG E FAU S T I A N
Even before the new law de-
(ON DECIDING TO
director, Assuncao Cruz, said. supported for self-esteem that T RY H E RO I N O NC E
criminalizing drugs for personal
“It’s never less than a month or a use, he said that medical profes-
month and a half on the waiting three months ... they’ve lost. MORE AFTER 20
sionals here agreed that drug us-
Y E A R S O F S O B R I E T Y. )
list. They can go to a treatment ZE DIAS DE CUNHA AS SUNCAO CRUZ ers weren’t criminals. Now, with
centre for support once a week the national guidelines, that’s en-
while they wait. But we do lose shrined in law.
many patients during those wait- beautiful therapeutic commu- by the Commission for the Dis- brightens the walls. But there Still, despite all the laws, rules
ing times. nities like Farol and Quinta das suasion of Drug Addiction. are still many reminders that and regulations and even though
“Recovery for us is abstinence Lapas, it is a bit like winning the There is no waiting list. During this is an institution, not least of this is a small country, Vasconce-
and giving the client a different lottery, which is fitting since they their first appointment, patients which the windows in bathroom los said there are regional differ-
kind of life with the internal and are the most acutely addicted, in are asked to talk about their situ- doors that allow staff to check to ences in the types of treatment
external reserves to have a family need of the most intensive and ation, then informed about the see if patients are taking drugs or, and the ways it’s delivered.
and a job. That’s the most impor- tender care. services the centre has to offer worse, have overdosed. “Every region thinks it’s best. So
tant thing: To give them the self- The reality is that most sub- and the rules of treatment. “Treatment is a tailored pro- we have the risk of disaggregating
esteem that they’ve lost.” stance users — whether in Portu- Some require immediate treat- gram,” he said. “Sometimes part the national plan.”
Ze Dias da Cunha, a 62-year-old gal, Canada or any other country ment and there are six detox beds. of the healing is to reintegrate to If regional differences and dis-
former heroin addict, has been — end up being treated as out- There used to be 15, but when the jobs and to school, so it can’t be agreements threaten a national
on the association’s board since patients, with some studies sug- financial crisis hit in 2008, nurses done as an in-patient. … But I am addictions treatment system in
it began more than a decade ago. gesting that the results are at least and other staff were transferred not God. I don’t foresee what will Portugal — a country with a tenth
He had to go to London for treat- as good as those for in-patients. to other institutions because of happen to my patients. I can only of the land mass of British Colum-
ment 33 years ago, and when he In Lisbon, being an outpatient budget cuts. give them my best advice.” bia, albeit double the population
returned in 1985 Dias started Por- means going to the rather grim The same thing happened at And his best advice is always — it’s certainly worth considering
tugal’s first Narcotics Anonymous Pavilion 21B at the city’s former Lisbon’s other institution that aimed at motivating patients to the challenges if Canada were to
chapter. psychiatric hospital. Built during deals with alcoholics. Its detox eventually get entirely off drugs. embark on a national plan.
“There are two issues with the Second World War, the pink- beds were cut to 16 from 30. “The treatment program here But it doesn’t mean that Canada
treatment in Portugal that I stuccoed building has peeling, It means that 90 per cent of peo- is directed toward abstinence shouldn’t have a national addic-
would change,” he said. “The state white-painted trim. Inside what’s ple who are voluntarily going into and maintaining the rules in the tions strategy.
has beds and pays a certain fee per now called the Taipas Centre, withdrawal will do so at home. process of healing,” he said. “But We’re used to different inter-
month for treatment. The prob- people wait for appointments in Within a week of the first visit, I will try to ensure prevention of pretations of the Canada Health
lem is that for 12-step treatment, a dimly lit rotunda with too few Vasconcelos and his team of psy- HIV.” Act across 10 provinces and three
the program is very condensed. chairs. chiatrists, psychologists, social Among the rules to which pa- territories that stretch over a land
People only get supported for They brighten with the arrival workers, nurses and physiother- tients must agree when they com- mass that is 100 times larger than
three months, while some other of the irrepressible Miguel Vas- apists come up with a treatment mit to the plan is that they cannot Portugal with more than triple the
therapeutic communities that concelos, a psychiatrist and the plan. be on drugs when they come to ap- population.
don’t use 12-step are funded for centre’s director. It’s presented to the patient at pointments. Far from viewing regional dif-
a year.” Ninety five per cent of the pa- a team meeting, and it might in- The only exception is metha- ferences as an assault on a na-
The second issue is that Dias tients are here because they clude methadone therapy, inten- done, an opioid replacement. But tional plan, it could mean that
believes the government ought called the well-publicized phone sive counselling, even laughing it’s considered a short-term ther- Canadians’ needs are better met
to be spending money research- number for addictions help, and yoga, dancing or art classes. apy needed to get the patient to by programs and services tailored
ing what kinds of treatment are some may well be referred for in- Those classes are given on the the next stage of recovery, which to their diverse needs.
the most effective. patient treatment. somewhat cheerier second floor is abstinence. dbramham@postmedia.com
For those who end up at Only five per cent are sent here of the building, where artwork Of course, some don’t agree to Twitter: @daphnebramham
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