18 November 2006
Wet Shelter is a Choice of Bad Judgement
I have been following the News Articles/Story in my local news publication The Daily Gleaner, and I find myself wondering how they expect the New Brunswick Taxpayer to find this kind of a Scheme. We have all kinds of Alcohol and Drug Treatment Centres in new Brunswick and around the Country that are properly suited and have more qualified staff that are government supported and their objective is to encourage the individuals to become clean and sober from their substnce of Addiction.
My understanding of the Wet Shelter functions according to the News I have been monitoring in the newspapers, is thst an individual who is an alcoholic would live at a designated shelter and would receive a small dosege of the alcoholic substnce every hour on the hour to keep their cravings at a minimum and manageble. The problem I have is this, the violent drunk who is totally unmanagable, will pick a major fight whether the person has the beverage rationed to them or not, they will still be violent, and that is not safe for the other people who have to use the facility who do not have a substance addistion.
I would strongly support a differnt approach to this idea by making sure that everyone who is suported in any by government funds and is in the using stages, these individuals should be made by the province to undergo a drug and alcohol treatment program for a period of not more than five years and not less than three years in order to receive welfare or any other alowance.
Also, To keep these in an active state of adiction is Morally and Ethically Wrong, because the problems that caused are not being investigated and these individuals are being permitted to continue using the idea is to give them an opportunity to Become clean and sober, not to submit them to a controled form of Euthenasia
Below is the following articles concerning the Wet Shelter Proposal, Read it and Judge for yourself
Daily Gleaner (Fredericton)
(2006-01-11)
(News)
Shelter exec. proposes pilot project for homeless alcoholics; Help Pat Carlson wants to provide alcohol the same way methadone is given to opiate addicts
Fredericton needs a wet shelter, says an expert on homelessness and addiction.
Pat Carlson, executive director of the Fredericton Emergency Shelter, said she wants to start a project to administer small, regular amount of alcohol to homeless alcoholics.
The alcoholics would purchase the liquor with their social assistance cheques and it would be kept in a secure room.
Every hour they would be allowed a few ounces, not enough to get drunk but enough to satisfy their cravings.
"It is no different than using methadone to treat opiate addictions," said Carlson.
"The alcohol is treated as a medication."
If a homeless person is not out-of-control drunk and disorderly then he or she can stay at the Fredericton Emergency Shelter, she said.
On Sunday, a homeless man in Fredericton climbed into a garbage bin around noon to escape cold, wet and windy weather. He became trapped in the bin for about 20 hours.
He was rescued Monday when a passerby he heard him moaning, reported the Fredericton Police Force.
Carlson said she wasn't surprised by the report.
She said she doesn't know the individual or the details of the incident. But the individual was probably intoxicated and couldn't stay at the shelter, she said.
"We're in a situation where we have a responsibility to look at housing extremely difficult people," said Carlson.
"They may be chronically addicted to alcohol or drugs and they need housing that is semi-supportive. I suspect that our friend who was in the dumpster is part of that group."
She said she recently visited a wet shelter in Toronto and was impressed by the project.
The Toronto experience found that some alcoholics stopped drinking without planning to do so, said Carlson. It was a result of having a safe, supportive place to live, she said.
"I want to have this happen in Fredericton," she said.
Carlson said the idea is common sense.
"It is about treating people where they are rather than trying to make them into us," she said. "It is a harm-reduction model."
Carlson said there is a lot of interest in such a project here and there are about seven clients that she knows about who would qualify.
She said all she needs a room that can safely secure the alcohol where the person can go every hour.
"We have a group in the community that is willing to hire someone," said Carlson.
"I have all those agreements in place. Our stumbling block is we can't find a location."
The location needs to be close to the shelter.
The Fredericton Emergency Shelter is too small and crowded and does not have a room that can be locked, said Carlson.
But it might end up being there as a last resort, she said.
By STEPHEN LLEWELLYN
- End of Article -
Daily Gleaner (Fredericton)
(2006-11-08)
(News)
Wet-shelter advocate to meet housing minister
A wet shelter for Fredericton will be on the agenda Thursday when Fredericton Shelters executive director Pat Carlson meets with State for Housing Minister Mary Schreyer.
"I have a really good feeling," said Carlson on Tuesday. "I believe that when someone offers you a solution, momentum starts to build. I am sensing that in the community."
A wet shelter is a place where chronic alcoholics can visit every hour to receive a small amount of wine or beer. By consuming small amounts every hour, alcoholics don't become intoxicated and unruly.
The harm-reduction model has worked in other communities, said Carlson.
Since the idea of a wet shelter was made public, Carlson said, there has been a lot of interest by social-program stakeholders in the city in setting up such a facility.
"It really gives me an indication that there is a group of people out there who know you have to think outside the box," she said.
A wet-shelter working group has been formed, she said.
"We are members of the community who are interested in preventing people from freezing to death outside," she said.
People can't stay at the shelter if they are intoxicated.
Carlson said Thursday's meeting with Schreyer is to provide more information to the provincial government on the concept.
"I think this can happen quite quickly," she said.
The wet shelter would require a secure room about four metres by five metres, contain a refrigerator that can hold beer and wine, and be within walking distance of the downtown shelter.
Carlson said large quantities of alcohol aren't involved and the risk of break-ins should be minimal. Hard liquor wouldn't be in the shelter.
One wet shelter in Ottawa allows clients to brew their own beer and wine to help keep down the cost. The clients of a wet shelter buy their alcohol with their own money, she said.
She said there is no safety issue and chronic alcoholics aren't violent when they are sober. She said they are shy, timid and unable to express their needs, and they only get aggressive when they are drunk.
Fredericton Mayor Brad Woodside said he doesn't think the city will get involved in the project.
"My initial reaction to that is it would be a council decision," he said Wednesday. "But we don't have alcohol in any of our city properties. That is just a rule that we have."
Woodside said the city gets a lot of requests for space from worthy groups which they have to turn down. The mayor said the city doesn't get involved in delivering health care and social programming.
"The Municipalities Act is very clear," he said.
Woodside declined to comment on the concept of the wet shelter.
"Addiction is very scientific," he said. "I cannot offer a comment on behalf of council.
"I am sure that there have been many studies done and I am just not privy to that. I just don't know."
Carlson said she is not discouraged by the city's reaction.
"The city is involved because the city police are working with us all the time," she said. "We will keep plowing ahead until the door opens."
By STEPHEN LLEWELLYN dgleg@nb.aibn.com
-End of Article-
Daily Gleaner (Fredericton)
(2006-11-08)
(News)
Public opinion the biggest hurdle - Carlson
The biggest obstacle to setting up a wet shelter in Fredericton may be public attitudes, not finding a location, said Pat Carlson, executive director of Fredericton Shelters.
"We live in a very judgmental society so it is hard for some people to get their head around why a chronic alcoholic should be treated so well," she said.
A wet shelter treats chronic alcoholics by administering a small amount of alcohol every hour all day.
That suppresses their cravings and prevents binge drinking in a harm-reduction model.
Carlson said she is sure there will be all kinds of reactions from people such as why it is all right to give alcoholics the very thing that makes them sick.
"We are doing something that will help a chronic alcoholic consume less, not more," she said.
Carlson said one shelter client recently had a major organ removed from their body that involved a six-day stay in hospital.
Two days after the individual got out of hospital, he was outside the shelter drinking large amounts of mouthwash which contains a small percentage of alcohol, she said.
"How could we possibly hurt him by giving him one drink an hour?" she asked. "It is all about understanding the behaviour of a chronic alcoholic. "
Improving the quality of life for alcoholics will improve the quality of life for everyone in the downtown area, she said.
"It is a win-win for everyone involved," said Carlson. "It is only positive."
By STEPHEN LLEWELLYN dgleg@nb.aibn.com
- End of Article -
Daily Gleaner (Fredericton)
(2006-11-09)
OPINION
Reader objects to wet shelter concept
I would like to comment on the news articles which appeared in the Wednesday and Thursday editions of the Daily Gleaner last week. The articles concerned the creation of a wet shelter for those in our community who suffer from addictions to alcoholic substances.
First of all, I would like to commend everyone who works on behalf of the poor, homeless, and those in our community who have found themselves in the ravages of addiction.
I believe they need a place to be where it is safe and warm and out of harm's way. However, when it comes to allowing them to continue receiving their drug or, alcoholic beverage of choice, I have a major problem with that concept. The idea is to help them to get off of the drug or alcoholic substance abuse not to continue in it.
I think this should be most strongly enforced and emphasized, before any money is dumped into this kind of a shelter. Serving these already severely addicted people with alcohol and narcotics will just kill them slower but, it will kill them all the same. I believe it is another form of euthanasia and it is a way to get rid of the reminder of what many of us used to participate in.
I would strongly recommend that we get shelter for these vulnerable individuals, and prepare hold their hands, pray for them and most of all see them through to an alcoholic- and drug-free life.
Michael G. McKay
Fredericton, NB.
My understanding of the Wet Shelter functions according to the News I have been monitoring in the newspapers, is thst an individual who is an alcoholic would live at a designated shelter and would receive a small dosege of the alcoholic substnce every hour on the hour to keep their cravings at a minimum and manageble. The problem I have is this, the violent drunk who is totally unmanagable, will pick a major fight whether the person has the beverage rationed to them or not, they will still be violent, and that is not safe for the other people who have to use the facility who do not have a substance addistion.
I would strongly support a differnt approach to this idea by making sure that everyone who is suported in any by government funds and is in the using stages, these individuals should be made by the province to undergo a drug and alcohol treatment program for a period of not more than five years and not less than three years in order to receive welfare or any other alowance.
Also, To keep these in an active state of adiction is Morally and Ethically Wrong, because the problems that caused are not being investigated and these individuals are being permitted to continue using the idea is to give them an opportunity to Become clean and sober, not to submit them to a controled form of Euthenasia
Below is the following articles concerning the Wet Shelter Proposal, Read it and Judge for yourself
Daily Gleaner (Fredericton)
(2006-01-11)
(News)
Shelter exec. proposes pilot project for homeless alcoholics; Help Pat Carlson wants to provide alcohol the same way methadone is given to opiate addicts
Fredericton needs a wet shelter, says an expert on homelessness and addiction.
Pat Carlson, executive director of the Fredericton Emergency Shelter, said she wants to start a project to administer small, regular amount of alcohol to homeless alcoholics.
The alcoholics would purchase the liquor with their social assistance cheques and it would be kept in a secure room.
Every hour they would be allowed a few ounces, not enough to get drunk but enough to satisfy their cravings.
"It is no different than using methadone to treat opiate addictions," said Carlson.
"The alcohol is treated as a medication."
If a homeless person is not out-of-control drunk and disorderly then he or she can stay at the Fredericton Emergency Shelter, she said.
On Sunday, a homeless man in Fredericton climbed into a garbage bin around noon to escape cold, wet and windy weather. He became trapped in the bin for about 20 hours.
He was rescued Monday when a passerby he heard him moaning, reported the Fredericton Police Force.
Carlson said she wasn't surprised by the report.
She said she doesn't know the individual or the details of the incident. But the individual was probably intoxicated and couldn't stay at the shelter, she said.
"We're in a situation where we have a responsibility to look at housing extremely difficult people," said Carlson.
"They may be chronically addicted to alcohol or drugs and they need housing that is semi-supportive. I suspect that our friend who was in the dumpster is part of that group."
She said she recently visited a wet shelter in Toronto and was impressed by the project.
The Toronto experience found that some alcoholics stopped drinking without planning to do so, said Carlson. It was a result of having a safe, supportive place to live, she said.
"I want to have this happen in Fredericton," she said.
Carlson said the idea is common sense.
"It is about treating people where they are rather than trying to make them into us," she said. "It is a harm-reduction model."
Carlson said there is a lot of interest in such a project here and there are about seven clients that she knows about who would qualify.
She said all she needs a room that can safely secure the alcohol where the person can go every hour.
"We have a group in the community that is willing to hire someone," said Carlson.
"I have all those agreements in place. Our stumbling block is we can't find a location."
The location needs to be close to the shelter.
The Fredericton Emergency Shelter is too small and crowded and does not have a room that can be locked, said Carlson.
But it might end up being there as a last resort, she said.
By STEPHEN LLEWELLYN
- End of Article -
Daily Gleaner (Fredericton)
(2006-11-08)
(News)
Wet-shelter advocate to meet housing minister
A wet shelter for Fredericton will be on the agenda Thursday when Fredericton Shelters executive director Pat Carlson meets with State for Housing Minister Mary Schreyer.
"I have a really good feeling," said Carlson on Tuesday. "I believe that when someone offers you a solution, momentum starts to build. I am sensing that in the community."
A wet shelter is a place where chronic alcoholics can visit every hour to receive a small amount of wine or beer. By consuming small amounts every hour, alcoholics don't become intoxicated and unruly.
The harm-reduction model has worked in other communities, said Carlson.
Since the idea of a wet shelter was made public, Carlson said, there has been a lot of interest by social-program stakeholders in the city in setting up such a facility.
"It really gives me an indication that there is a group of people out there who know you have to think outside the box," she said.
A wet-shelter working group has been formed, she said.
"We are members of the community who are interested in preventing people from freezing to death outside," she said.
People can't stay at the shelter if they are intoxicated.
Carlson said Thursday's meeting with Schreyer is to provide more information to the provincial government on the concept.
"I think this can happen quite quickly," she said.
The wet shelter would require a secure room about four metres by five metres, contain a refrigerator that can hold beer and wine, and be within walking distance of the downtown shelter.
Carlson said large quantities of alcohol aren't involved and the risk of break-ins should be minimal. Hard liquor wouldn't be in the shelter.
One wet shelter in Ottawa allows clients to brew their own beer and wine to help keep down the cost. The clients of a wet shelter buy their alcohol with their own money, she said.
She said there is no safety issue and chronic alcoholics aren't violent when they are sober. She said they are shy, timid and unable to express their needs, and they only get aggressive when they are drunk.
Fredericton Mayor Brad Woodside said he doesn't think the city will get involved in the project.
"My initial reaction to that is it would be a council decision," he said Wednesday. "But we don't have alcohol in any of our city properties. That is just a rule that we have."
Woodside said the city gets a lot of requests for space from worthy groups which they have to turn down. The mayor said the city doesn't get involved in delivering health care and social programming.
"The Municipalities Act is very clear," he said.
Woodside declined to comment on the concept of the wet shelter.
"Addiction is very scientific," he said. "I cannot offer a comment on behalf of council.
"I am sure that there have been many studies done and I am just not privy to that. I just don't know."
Carlson said she is not discouraged by the city's reaction.
"The city is involved because the city police are working with us all the time," she said. "We will keep plowing ahead until the door opens."
By STEPHEN LLEWELLYN dgleg@nb.aibn.com
-End of Article-
Daily Gleaner (Fredericton)
(2006-11-08)
(News)
Public opinion the biggest hurdle - Carlson
The biggest obstacle to setting up a wet shelter in Fredericton may be public attitudes, not finding a location, said Pat Carlson, executive director of Fredericton Shelters.
"We live in a very judgmental society so it is hard for some people to get their head around why a chronic alcoholic should be treated so well," she said.
A wet shelter treats chronic alcoholics by administering a small amount of alcohol every hour all day.
That suppresses their cravings and prevents binge drinking in a harm-reduction model.
Carlson said she is sure there will be all kinds of reactions from people such as why it is all right to give alcoholics the very thing that makes them sick.
"We are doing something that will help a chronic alcoholic consume less, not more," she said.
Carlson said one shelter client recently had a major organ removed from their body that involved a six-day stay in hospital.
Two days after the individual got out of hospital, he was outside the shelter drinking large amounts of mouthwash which contains a small percentage of alcohol, she said.
"How could we possibly hurt him by giving him one drink an hour?" she asked. "It is all about understanding the behaviour of a chronic alcoholic. "
Improving the quality of life for alcoholics will improve the quality of life for everyone in the downtown area, she said.
"It is a win-win for everyone involved," said Carlson. "It is only positive."
By STEPHEN LLEWELLYN dgleg@nb.aibn.com
- End of Article -
Daily Gleaner (Fredericton)
(2006-11-09)
OPINION
Reader objects to wet shelter concept
I would like to comment on the news articles which appeared in the Wednesday and Thursday editions of the Daily Gleaner last week. The articles concerned the creation of a wet shelter for those in our community who suffer from addictions to alcoholic substances.
First of all, I would like to commend everyone who works on behalf of the poor, homeless, and those in our community who have found themselves in the ravages of addiction.
I believe they need a place to be where it is safe and warm and out of harm's way. However, when it comes to allowing them to continue receiving their drug or, alcoholic beverage of choice, I have a major problem with that concept. The idea is to help them to get off of the drug or alcoholic substance abuse not to continue in it.
I think this should be most strongly enforced and emphasized, before any money is dumped into this kind of a shelter. Serving these already severely addicted people with alcohol and narcotics will just kill them slower but, it will kill them all the same. I believe it is another form of euthanasia and it is a way to get rid of the reminder of what many of us used to participate in.
I would strongly recommend that we get shelter for these vulnerable individuals, and prepare hold their hands, pray for them and most of all see them through to an alcoholic- and drug-free life.
Michael G. McKay
Fredericton, NB.
