A new 20-bed addiction centre for women has opened in South Surrey.
The Patricia Hope House (19465 16 Ave.) held a grand opening event on Aug. 14. The live-in centre is a place where women can find refuge and healing in the minimum year-long program, according to a news release.
Additionally, there is a minimum 18-month transition program called ‘Successful Living Program’ where women transition according to their individual needs. Women are to be given opportunities to volunteer, find employment, pursue education or apply to the organization’s leadership program.
The release notes that “addiction is born out of tragedy.”
SEE ALSO: ‘Trauma equals addiction’ – why some seek solace in illicit substances
“Trauma, broken families, job loss, and difficult life transitions all put an incalculable stress on people’s mental health,” the release notes. “There is an interplay between depression, anxiety, PTSD, psychosis, and suicide with addiction.”
One of the reasons the facility is needed, the release notes, is that the COVID-19 pandemic has “greatly” increased addiction through isolation and an unprecedented lack of human connection.
Added government financial resources, the release notes, “gave way to increased drug use.”
“Unfortunately, the ones that suffer are the most vulnerable. While opioid drug overdoses mostly claim men’s lives, vulnerable women are not accounted for in the addiction epidemic for many reasons.”
The residential center is operated by Adult & Teen Challenge BC.
More information can be found here.
