The Crystal Meth Working Group feels it has a plan to combat the crisis in Saskatoon.
Group coordinator Colleen Christopherson-Cote says over 1-thousand hours of community dialogue, research and consultation went into 29 strategic actions laid out in the plan.
The working group comprised of community leaders, practitioners, residents including users in addition to youth identified five areas of concentration.
The strategies focus on prevention, treatment, harm reduction, enforcement and suppression as well as data integration.
Prevention recommendations include teaching the complexity of addictions in school, creating a 24-hour drop in centre and youth shelter.
The treatment strategies include tailoring inpatient and outpatient services for meth addiction recovery and a model for Indigenous people as well as a rapid action addiction medicine program.
The development of a drug court in Saskatoon is also suggested.
Saskatoon Police Superintendent Randy Huisman says identifying the cases that don’t belong in court is a priority and supports the recommendation of having addictions workers ride along with officers on calls where criminal prosecution isn’t the likely outcome.
He says police are fully on board because what has been done in the past with respect to crystal meth simply hasn’t been working.
Addictions worker Tracy Muggli of the Saskatchewan Health Authority says some of the strategies are already being used and feels building on them with an integrated approach is exciting.
The Associate Executive Director of Aids Saskatoon is a recovered meth addict.
Kayla Demong who is also their Family Support Coordinator says her journey to recovery was fraught with systematic roadblocks largely due to a lack of integration.
She points out users wanting to quit often relapse when doors close on treatment or related services. Demong says housing, mental health support and access to a safe place to use all need to be in place for the long rehabilitation process.
The group was put together to halt the upward spiral in crystal meth cases.
Saskatoon Police report crystal meth possession charges have risen from 15 in 2012 to 408 in 2018.