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Learning about therapeutic communities

February 16th, 2012 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (0 Comments)

People live in organized and structured environments to promote change, support a drug-free life in outside society

Therapeutic communities are drug-free environments in which people with addictions and other problems can live together in an organized and structured way. The community environment promotes change and can make a drug-free life possible. A number of therapeutic communities are operating on Vancouver Island. A symposium in Nanaimo will provide an overview of therapeutic communities and provide opportunities for partnerships to explore the development of therapeutic communities. (more…)

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Testing housing first for chronic alcoholics

February 16th, 2012 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on Testing housing first for chronic alcoholics)

A study shows that nonabstinence-based housing does not enable alcohol use, but actually decreases it

A controversial project using a housing-first approach with chronically alcoholic homeless people in Seattle has been shown to decrease overall alcohol consumption levels. The program, which is funded by the City of Seattle, allows homeless shelter residents to continue to use alcohol, with an overall goal to reduce both alcohol use and alcohol-related problems. Now a study has found that the approach results in “across-the-board decreases in alcohol consumption and problems”, according to lead researcher Susan Collins. (more…)

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Pandora’s Box or Xbox?

December 6th, 2011 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on Pandora’s Box or Xbox?)

The debate over violence, addiction and isolation in video gaming

In September 2011, a middle-aged British man burst into the home of a fellow online computer gamer, aged 13 years, and “throttled” him, according to news reports. The shocked teenager’s mother intervened and saved her gaming son.

The story doesn’t surprise Nanaimo resident and avid gamer Ronin Broad, who says that threats and arguments among competing online players are common. Whether online death threats are real or virtual might be the big question. The British incident occurred after the teenager “killed” the middle-aged man in the online game and then taunted him. The Daily Mail reported that the man who throttled the youth “had mental health issues.” (more…)

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After the ruling, what’s next?

October 6th, 2011 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on After the ruling, what’s next?)

The Insite decision could signal a fundamental change in the way Canadian society approaches and deals with addiction

The Supreme Court of Canada’s decision of September 30, 2011 regarding the continuation of the Insite supervised injection site has been seen as a victory for harm reduction policies and provincial and individual rights. It has also been portrayed as a repudiation of the Harper government’s focus on incarceration and punishment as an approach for dealing with drug-related social and health problems…a triumph of reason over ideology.

Now a larger question looms. What impacts might this decision have beyond the Vancouver supervised injection program—which is the only program of its kind in North America? It seems certain that ongoing ideological battles over harm reduction haven’t ended. But is it possible that the court’s decision reflects a fundamental change in the way Canadian society approaches and deals with addiction and its associated harms?

We look at the supervised injection program—and the court decision—with three guests. (more…)

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On smoking and mental illness

May 26th, 2011 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on On smoking and mental illness)

A look at the ethics of smoking bans in psychiatric facilities and the dynamics of a consumer-driven stop-smoking program 

According to the World Health Report 2001, people with psychiatric illnesses are about twice as likely to smoke as others; those with schizophrenia and alcohol dependence are particularly likely to be heavy smokers, with rates as high as 86%. A 2000 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that individuals with psychiatric illnesses had a smoking rate of 41% compared with 22.5% in the general population, and estimated that 44% of all cigarettes smoked in the United States are consumed by people with psychiatric illnesses. (more…)

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Gambling addiction is a health issue

March 17th, 2011 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on Gambling addiction is a health issue)

Dr. Shao-Hua Lu on increased gambling exposure and how it could cause a spike in gambling addictions

Gambling problems share many similarities with other addictive disorders. However, there are no visible signs or physical changes that will indicate a gambling problem. Instead, there are common behavioural, emotional, financial and health signs. Problem gambling is not just about losing money. Gambling problems can affect a person’s entire life. [Source: CAMH]

Dr. Shao-Hua Lu, a psychiatrist specializing in addictions, recently told The Straight.ca that the expansion of casinos such as the one proposed for B.C. Place increases the risk of children becoming gamblers later on in life.  A study called Decoding British Columbian Youth and Gambling [opens to PDF] has suggested that there is a link between a parent’s gambling activity and their child’s attitude toward—and participation in—gambling. (more…)

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