IN THE NEWS| DRUG STRATEGY - The Leader-Post 10.19.2005 "Saskatchewan's work praised" | Saskatchewan is at the "front of the country" when it comes to dealing with substance abuse according to the CEO of the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse.
In Regina this week to meet with those working with addictions issues and to award Premier Lorne Calvert for his leadership on the subject, Michel Perron praised the work of the province and municipalities in dealing with substance abuse.
"(There is) the articulation of a clear strategy at a provincial level with clear goals, expectations, money being put toward it," he said. "And most importantly, or as important, political leadership -- an engagement to making this not only a one or two-year strategy but an ongoing sustainable strategy."
Project Hope, the province's detailed plan for enhancing Saskatchewan's capacity to address addictions, is just one example of the work being done, he said.
"Regina is very much held out as a model example of how a city should have a drug strategy," he added, also acknowledging the progressive work of Yorkton and Moose Jaw.
"It's not any one strategy that's going to make the difference, it's rather the opportunity and the need of working together," he said.
And even though Saskatchewan is at the national average when it comes to the incidence of substance abuse, Perron said many jurisdictions imitate the work of the province in their own programming.
As for the drug making the most headlines across the country right now -- crystal meth -- Perron said Saskatchewan is taking the right approach to it.
"With the development of a strategy .... it mitigates for the panic responses to particular blips in youth," he explained. "Certainly, crystal meth is a devastating substance that has a tremendous, obvious and visible impact but at the end of the day, we also have to make sure we don't lose site of the ball which are those substances that over the long haul cost us more."
At the same time, however, we can't ignore its effects, he added.
While admitting court-ordered treatment Perron also questioned the idea of parents using mandatory treatment for meth-addicted youth, a solution being pushed by the Saskatchewan Party.
"What we want to do is look at the entirety of the response of the system -- access to treatment for young people, stabilization of young people," he said. "These are all the key elements you have to have in place. To focus exceptionally on mandatory treatment is sort of missing the broader picture."
From here out, Perron said, the government now has to act on and implement the plans they've laid out to stay at the front of the country and Calvert along with ministers need to start pushing their counterparts to follow Saskatchewan's lead.
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December 15, 2007
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