Recovery Week: Recovery Capital Conference of Canada

Global Addiction Experts to Gather in New Westminster to Discuss Recovery Amidst the Ongoing Opioid Crisis

Global addiction experts will gather at a conference in New Westminster, BC, from September 6th to 9th, for the first ever Recovery Capital Conference of Canada (RCCC), as part of the inaugural “Recovery Week”, which takes place from September 4th to the 10th.

Located at the Anvil Centre, the Recovery Capital Conference of Canada will educate policy makers and health care providers in BC on how to foster recovery as part of the continuum of care for addiction, by identifying the resources necessary for an individual to achieve and maintain recovery, and potentially reduce the number of people on opioid substitution treatment.

Giuseppe Ganci, Chair of the Conference and Recovery Week says: “Breaking ground in mental health and addiction care, the Recovery Capital Conference of Canada will feature leading international researchers, clinicians and policy makers who will provide evidence based clinical knowledge, gained through decades of care.”

The conference includes a delegates tour of Vancouver’s epicenter of harm reduction services on Wednesday September 6th, followed by two stakeholder meetings hosted by the City of New Westminster, that will include: keynote speaker, leading global recovery expert, Dr. João Goulão, who currently acts as Director-General of The General-Directorate for Intervention on Addictive Behaviours and dependencies (SICAD); Provincial and local policy makers; health care leaders; and other community organizations on September 7th.

This conference will work to eliminate healthcare silos and move the country’s treatment community towards the creation of more effective, comprehensive systems of health care for all Canadians.

Agenda:

September 6 – Speakers Tour of the Downtown Eastside
September 7 – Stakeholder Meetings, (Attendance 150)
September 7 & 8 – Recovery Capital Conference of Canada (Attendance 500)
September 9 – Recovery Day Street Festival (Attendance 8,000)
September 4 to 10 – Recovery Week
September 9 – Province Wide Moment of Silence for the Over Dose Crisis

The recovery advocacy movement is making itself heard in Canada, alerting policy makers of the millions of people, once suffering silently from addiction, now living healthy, drug-free and engaged lives with the help of evidence based Recovery Oriented Treatment Services.

In May, the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA) announced the findings from its first-ever Life in Recovery from Addiction in Canada survey, which compiled the results of a survey of people in recovery from addiction to alcohol and drugs, and showed that recovery is linked to positive citizenship — engagement with family, friends, the community and the workforce.

“It is time to change the tone of the dialogue on addiction. Many of us know someone who suffers from active addiction, and can speak from personal experience about how difficult it is to access services and supports. Our approach towards the issue must change to reflect key principles of recovery. The key findings of the report released [in May] highlight the benefits of recovery: the enhanced quality of life, improved relationships and more stable employment, among many others. It is now up to all of us to take this information and translate it into action to ensure that those positive outcomes are available to all who are in active addiction,” says Rita Notarandrea, Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse and Addiction (CCSA).

In total, 91% of participants in the survey reported that their quality of life was either excellent, very good or good after recovery had been initiated — a finding that offers hope for people living with addiction, something championed by the famous “Portuguese Experience”, a very specific treatment program that sees substance users issued a summons to appear before the “Commission for the Dissuasion of Drug Addiction”, at which point patients are then evaluated by a social worker, a psychiatrist and an attorney. Upon assessment, treatment plans are offered.

The Portuguese government has seen the number of people on opioid substitution treatment decrease from 29,325 in 2010, to 16,858 people in 2013. In Ontario, by comparison, it is estimated there were 29,000 residents in 2010 accessing opioid replacement therapies (ORT), but that number skyrocketed to roughly 50,000 people in 2014 and is expected to be even higher today. Meanwhile, in BC, 11,359 residents were on ORT in 2010, which also increased to over 17,000 in 2014, and it is presumed that even more British Columbians are accessing opiate substitution treatment in 2016/ 2017.

About the Recovery Capital Conference of Canada
The Recovery Capital Conference of Canada, located at the Anvil Centre, will educate policy makers and health care providers in BC on how to foster Recovery Capital by identifying the resources necessary for an individual to achieve and maintain recovery. This conference will help eliminate healthcare silos and move our treatment community towards the creation of better comprehensive systems of health care for all Canadians.