A major donation is sure to go a long way in the construction of a new residential withdrawal management program in Chatham-Kent.
On Wednesday, the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance announced it is receiving a $155,000 donation from the United Way for renovations needed to operate the recently announced program.
The 10-bed, $1.1 million program at the hospital in Chatham was approved in February and came with $100,000 in provincial funding for furnishings and equipment. The Municipality of Chatham-Kent also gave the project $500,000.
"We are funded to operate the program but we are not funded for the capital," said CKHA Vice President of Mental Health & Addictions Alan Stevenson. "This donation takes us over halfway."
A three-bed unit is currently operating while the renovations are underway. The expectation is for the project to be finished by June.
The program will operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week at the hospital in the former outpatient mental health services building. The Rapid Access to Addiction Medicine (RAAM) clinic will also re-locate adjacent to this service after construction is complete.
"Up until now, [withdrawal management] has only been available in either London, Windsor, or Sarnia. Those beds are almost always full," said Stevenson. "The likelihood of getting from Chatham, usually from our emergency department, is very low."
United Way Board President Wes Thompson said this is one of United Way’s largest donations in recent years.
“This issue, we’ve bumped into it time and time again. And when we heard about [the program], we were so excited. We said we have got to step up to the plate on this one,” said Thompson. "The need in our community for a local solution is great, but the will to develop that solution is even greater."
The withdrawal program provides residents with a supportive space to withdraw from substances safely. It also acts as an initiation for follow-up addictions treatment.
"We wish we could catch people sooner in that cycle than we do now and this process is a part of that," said Thompson. "A lot of people don't understand the economics of it. We want to try and catch people upstream. It's better for the community and it's a lot less expensive after they've gone through all the dreadful things they go through."
The donation is a major step in the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance Foundation's campaign to raise the funds needed. However, the foundation continues to call on the community for support.
