Helping more Albertans in their pursuit of recovery

by ahnationtalk on August 19, 2022322 Views

Aug 19, 2022

More than $5 million in community grants will support Albertans of every age in their recovery from mental health and addiction challenges.

For the past three years Alberta’s government has been building a comprehensive recovery-oriented system of addiction and mental health care. Local community organizations are essential to building community recovery capital, helping more Albertans pursue recovery, and preventing addiction and mental health challenges from arising in the first place.

This $5 million in new grant funding will help 27 community organizations across Alberta provide recovery-oriented care at the community level. Of this $5 million, $3 million will help Albertans recovering from a range of addiction and mental health challenges, from social isolation and grief to trauma and eating disorders. An additional $1.5 million will support organizations offering mental health and wellness supports for children and youth. Finally, more than $500,000 will help First Nations and Metis communities to support culturally appropriate programs and services.

“Our focus when it comes to mental health and addiction is to ensure that every Albertan has every opportunity to improve their lives and recover from the challenges they face. This new grant funding of $5 million will help more Albertans improve their mental wellness, engage positively with their communities, and connect with family.”

Mike Ellis, Associate Minister of Health and Addictions

“Supporting the mental health and wellness of children and youth is critical to their well-being, now and in the future. These targeted investments into a variety of services will ensure more young Albertans across the province receive mental health supports helping to build stronger foundations for the rest of their lives.”

Matt Jones, Minister of Children’s Services

“At Impact Society our goal is to prevent mental health and addiction challenges by helping young Albertans improve their resilience. We are proud to be part of a comprehensive recovery-oriented system of care and we look forward to continued partnership with Alberta’s government.”

Chris Primeau, chief executive officer, Impact Society

“At Oxford House our goal is provide safe, supportive, recovery-oriented housing to people recovering from addiction. This additional funding will enable us to help more Albertans maintain recovery, become independent, reconnect with community, regain employment, and improve their relationships with family. We will continue to help build the recovery-oriented system of care in Alberta and we thank Alberta’s government for their ongoing support.”

Earl Thiessen, executive director, Oxford House Foundation of Canada

“Recovery from addiction and mental health challenges means addressing all aspects of life, including fitness. At Terminator Foundation we are helping young Albertans in their pursuit of recovery with recovery-oriented triathlon training. This work would not be possible without the support of Alberta’s government and we are proud to be part of this system we’re all building together.”

Vanisha Breault, founder & CEO, Terminator Foundation

Alberta’s government is continuing to implement a recovery-oriented system of addiction and mental health care that is person-centred, community-based, and builds on the strengths and resilience of individuals, families and communities.

This includes expanding access to affordable counselling and accessible mental health supports; supporting the addition of more than 8,000 new publicly funded treatment spaces; the elimination of daily user fees for publicly funded residential addiction treatment; a new patient matching tool, Recovery Access Alberta; and services to reduce harm, such as the Digital Overdose Response System (DORS) app; the introduction of a nasal naloxone pilot; the expansion of opioid agonist therapy; and fully covering the cost of the injectable opioid treatment drug Sublocade.

Quick facts

Alberta’s government is providing more than $5 million to 27 organizations to expand recovery-oriented addiction and mental health services throughout the province.
This funding is in addition to the $53 million in COVID-19 mental health and addiction funding provided in the 2021-22 budget for supports and services.
Albertans experiencing addiction and mental health challenges can contact 211 Alberta, the Addiction Helpline or the Mental Health Helpline for support, information and referrals.

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