Posted on 01/03/2006 7:34:37 PM PST by Fido969
Ottawa program offers drinks to homeless alcoholics Last updated Jan 3 2006 07:37 AM EST
CBC News
Shelters across the country are taking a closer look at an Ottawa shelter that gives drinks to homeless alcoholics after a study suggested the program is having a positive impact.
Two men in the program receive their drinks at an Ottawa shelter.
Dr. Tiina Podymow envisioned the program after volunteering with chronic alcoholics, including some who drank upwards of 40 drinks per day of alcohol and liquids such as mouthwash.
Participants in the Managed Alcohol Project were given permanent beds in a shelter and, from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m, allowed to have one drink of homemade wine or beer per hour, carefully measured out at a dispensary counter.
A study published in this week's edition of the Canadian Medical Association Journal is raising interest in the program.
Completed by the shelter's medical director, Dr. Jeff Turnbull, the study examined the program's impact on 17 residents.
Most had been alcoholics for 35 years before starting the program.
Turnbull's study found:
Participants who typically had 46 drinks a day before the program dropped to about eight drinks a day during the program.
The number of visits to the emergency room fell by 36 per cent.
The number of encounters with police was essentially halved.
Critics say there's no way to judge how effective the harm-reduction approach is because there's no comparison group in the study, such as people taking part in an abstinence program like Alcoholics Anonymous.
But Turnbull says the aim of the program is not complete abstinence.
"We always try to encourage people to stop drinking, but we are realistic," he said. "These are people who have spent 20 to 30 years on the street and trying to get them to stop alcohol is not possible at this time."
Others question the reasoning behind the program.
"If this works for alcoholism and you can keep your streets cleaner and safer, then what is stopping you from doing it for cocaine addicts or crystal meth people?" asked Salvation Army spokesperson Brian Venables.
Podymow says she understands the criticism.
"I would totally agree the best treatment is to stop completely," she said, "but if the person with the disease isn't going to stop, what else is the plan?"
Wendy Cooper and Jimmy Smyth went through the program together and are now both completely dry.
"If it wasn't for the program, I seriously say I would've been dead by now," said Cooper.
With a year-long waiting list to get into the program, several shelters in other cities are interested in adopting it.
Alchoholism is a PROGRESSIVE desease. There is a temporary improvement - but these folks will just accelerate on their downward slide.
Hopefully the Liberals will soon be homeless....
So this is, in a way, cost reduction (if it pans out as advertised at least, which I wouldn't bet on). Bah. I'm not sticking around in the country for long.
No A.A. in Canada? Or is that somehow politically incorrect?
They have AA, but AA requires one to admit they have a problem and take responsibility for themselves and their sobriety.
What a great idea! We should ship all of our bums to Canada.
Yeah, there is a long waiting list to get into the program.
Lessee, detox, rehab and six months in a halfway house... Or plan B - the government give them a free place to stay and feeds them free drinks.
OK, soppy, what say you?
Benefit of this program:
The nannies feel better about themselves
They ignore the sad reality that essentially there is nothing they can do to genuinely help these people other than food and shelter. i.e., make them a little more comfortable on their way to death.
It'll never happen. They keep stealing our money.
I hope they're giving them some smokes too !
oh Can a duh
That's not the half of the socialist state, how about this one: the City of St. Louis sets homeless alchololics up in apartments with cabinets stocked with liquor! Reason, they'd rather "provide" the liquor since the addicted will probably get it somehow and it would be better to provide it rather than have the addicts stealing, etc. Taxpayer funded addictions?
Now there's where you are wrong. It's never been OUR money. It's their money. I would give both testicles (OK not both, but the left one) to be able to leave this sorry excuse for a country....
Ottawa shelter that gives drinks to homeless alcoholics
----Might as well start offering crack and heroin to homeless drug addicts cause now they will be screaming discrimination . (just kiddin)
There is another angle to this that I just thought of. The nannies are slowly [deliberately?] euthanizing these sad creatures. They are already killing themselves. Isn't it more kind and dignified if they don't have to steal and can stay comfortable while the government helps them along to their destination? Everyone in society benefits this way (liberal reasoning), don't they?
No smoking!
Hmmm...
I think the government should give me cars, homes, boats, vacations - because if they don't I'll just exploit the working class and get those things anyway.
You know - I don't believe the claim that the consumption of these people dropped from 30 something drinks a day to 8. I doubt that the 30 something number was an average, and also I'd be willing to bet that when these drunks get there hourly ration of rum (More, sir?) they lick their lips and say to themselves "That didn't quite cut it" and go out and hustle, steal, panhandle, whatever, for more booze to get up to whatever level they think they needed.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.