April 28, 2016–On one typical day late last year, 416 women and children across Canada sought shelter to escape violence. Of that total, however, shelters were forced to turn away 73 per cent of those in need due to a lack of resources and capacity, an annual tally to be released Thursday shows. Read the rest of this article at The Globe and Mail…
Naomi Wakan, a former psychotherapist turned author, artist and poet, has been laying the groundwork for a new generation of poets during her tenure as Nanaimo’s first poet laureate
“Sit-com sonnets, soundscapes of noise, videogame goombas, an Old-Testament God, teenage longing within the power chords of heavy metal, and the complicated loss of a father to schizophrenia”
As drug overdose deaths continue to climb in British Columbia, new figures on the use of naloxone, which can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose within minutes, show there has also been a significant increase in drug users being pulled back from the brink. Read the rest of this article at The Globe and Mail…
The Canadian Mental Health Association is asking Canadians to ‘get loud’ and encouraging them to talk more openly and honestly about mental health. Mental Health Week is May 2-6. Events celebrating mental health are using the social media hashtag ‘Get Loud.’ Read the rest of this article at Nanaimo News Bulletin…
Treating addicts as if they are criminals doesn’t help them, nor does it stem public appetite for illicit substances, health experts say
Top health officials in British Columbia are calling for a significant change in drug policy that would ensure people who use illicit drugs do not face criminal charges for it. Dr. Perry Kendall, B.C.’s provincial health officer, said he supports decriminalization because treating users as criminals has been costly and ineffective. Read the rest of this article at The Globe and Mail…
