Crystal Meth Forum Set
By 250 News
Monday, November 12, 2007 03:54 AM
Groups focused on crystal meth prevention in Northern BC will attend a special forum in Prince George on November 15 to discuss strategies.
"Substance abuse is an issue in the North," said Suzanne Johnston, Northern Health's vice-president of academic services and chief nursing officer. "At Northern Health, we've been working to further develop our staff's ability to respond to this issue. In particular, the use of stimulants is problematic, of which crystal meth is an example."
Northern Health and the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General are hosting a special crystal meth prevention forum in Prince George on November 15. The "Building Capacity in Northern Communities" forum is being held for organizations that received funding from the Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) for local crystal meth initiatives.
Forum participants will have the opportunity to share their project work and discuss community oriented prevention strategies with the hopes of building on these strategies.
Participants in the forum are expected to include representatives from Quesnel, Vanderhoof, Mackenzie, Fort Nelson, Dawson Creek, Hazelton, Kitwanga, Terrace, Kitsumkalum, and Burns Lake.
Last year, the provincial government funded the $2 million Community Methamphetamine Response Program. The grant program, administered by the Union of BC Municipalities on behalf of government, distributed grants to 160 organizations across the province. The grants have helped create some 30 crystal meth task forces and community coalitions, and have funded projects like youth peer support groups, a website for at-risk youth, recruitment and training of First Nations' outreach workers, and
traditional healing programs for communities affected by the drug.
In conjunction with this forum, a public session will be held during the evening for parents, youth, educators, and other interested residents.
The session will take place from 7:00 to 9:00pm at the Coast Inn of the North in Prince George. The evening session will include an introduction by Shirley Bond, Minister of Education and MLA for Prince George-Mount Robson, and a video and slide presentation by Mark McLaughlin, President, and Marilyn Erickson, Vice-President, of the Crystal Meth Society of B.C.
Previous Story - Next Story
Email
Print
Facebook
Twitter
Digg
Del.icio.usReturn to Home
Posted by: gangstahater on November 12 2007 10:44 PM
Do ya think??
"The use of stimulants is problematic"...
Yes it is...did it cost us 2 million bucks to figure that out?
"2 million dollar Methamphetamine Response Program"...
Great...but like so many of these programs,what did they actually DO besides hold meetins,seminars,and talk a lot?
"Crytal Meth Society of B.C."??
What?...it has it's own society now?.. and do these people actually get paid for this?
Sorry to sound negative,but perhaps these people could tell us what they have actually accomplished with all that tax money, because the problem doesn't seem to be getting any better?