Crossroads Closing

[cv23]

There is a pervasive attitude among our elected officials, government employees and contractors alike that government means easy money, .

Just who do you think runs and staffs facilities like Crossroads? Here you go Queen K as if this is not directly bashing the HEU then I don't know what is.You're blaming the management and staff at Crossroads for the failure of the facility yet forgetting about those who took from the facility but gave nothing back.
I strongly believe that the people which Crossroads serves want a hand up not a hand out. Putting them on a payment plan for that hand up and the services they received is a far better idea than simply wiping their bottoms and sending them on their way full of the knowledge that they don't need to help themselves in life because there will always be others to correct whatever problems they find themselves or fix whatever bad decisions they make in life. If only life was so easy for everyone.
Society all over the world is crumbling in part because the takers are draining systems faster than the few contributors can replenish them.
Consider this. If a patient at Crossroads shoveled the walk , cut the lawn or even contributed a mere $30/day to their stay the facility would at least be breaking even and able to remain open to serve others as well as those presently receiving treatment. Is $200 really that much to ask a person to contribute to a facility who provided care , lodging and lifesaving treatment to them for a week?

[theyeti]

1000 a month sounds reasonable to me . in a year thats only 12 k u would save that in the first few months if u had any kind of serious habits .

however heroin and booze both carry long detox periods when a person will not be able to go to work or earn money . so maybe we ought to cover the detox portion of the bill as tax payers , if it costs more than 1000 a month i feel ppl have alot of choices provided they spend the 15 or 20 k on a 6 month spa like program

[Trunk-Monkey]

As much as this is a sad thing....its a sign of the times. Things are getting tight financially for everyone.

[Piecemaker]

CV, I think you took fluffy's post out of context. The staff at Crossroads are NOT government employees. The issues with Crossroads are not staff striking for higher wages, etc. Non-profit societies often struggle to keep their doors open.
As to the clients "working off" their stay, it is obvious you know little about treatment facilities and programs.
Facilities have licensing requirements. You can't have non-employees "working" or you are violating WCB and Employment Standards and would be shut down. There are safety requirements for mowing, shovelling, food preparation and service, housekeeping and so on. So let the that go, besides Crossroads doesn't have massive lawns to mow or sidewalks to shovel.
Secondly, when someone is in a treatment program they have various meetings and activities they are scheduled to participate in. It is not a vacation with hotel service! Those there do make their beds and clean up after themselves in their shared bathrooms.
Expecting someone receiving care to labour while they are being treated is demeaning to them. If someone goes into the hospital with a malady we do not say. "OK, now that you've had your vasectomy or diabetes education session or physiotherapy, etc we want you to sweep the emergency entrance drive way and repaint the road markings." No. When you are at KGH, your physiotherapist, the Walk-In Clinic, getting your child speech therapy, etc, you are in a client relationship. Crossroads is the same. It is funded similar to the services mentioned above.
There are some who DO pay for their stay at Crossroads out of their own pocket. Unfortunately, the nature of addictions is such that most have spent their money on the addiction and are barely eeking out survival. Also, we live in a country that provides medical/mental health care to its citizens. Addiction treatment fall under that and they are just as entitled to their care as you would be if you decide to have a baby or seek treatment for an eating disorder.
Those who have received treatment for their addicitons and remain in recovery are many. They contribute to society by being able to provide for themselves and their families and pay taxes, etc. In fact, they often contribute MORE than many who have not experienced addiction first hand. They volunteer their efforts to help others recover or maintain recovery, they are the ones who will give a helping hand to others and money out of their own pocket to someone with a greater need than their own. They have compassion and understanding because they were there once and got the help they needed when they needed it at Crossroads or some other form of public-supported medical, psychological treatment.
Addictions costs us ALL a great deal more if it is left untreated.

[fluffy]

Just who do you think runs and staffs facilities like Crossroads? Here you go Queen K as if this is not directly bashing the HEU then I don't know what is.You're blaming the management and staff at Crossroads for the failure of the facility yet forgetting about those who took from the facility but gave nothing back.

You're twisting my words to suit your own agenda cv23, but I'm not biting. There is money being wasted at every level of government, money that is sorely needed in other places and by people who need a hell of a lot more than a new car or a trip to the tropics. If there is staff not pulling their weight (and I'm not saying there is) then they too are part of the problem.

[W105]

VERY well said Piecemaker

[fluffy]

Yes, thanks for that Piecemaker. Addiction is a medical problem, not like a broken leg or heart condition but still a medical problem requiring qualified medical treatment. Society's tendency to view it as a social problem easily corrected if only those involved would "choose" not to abuse is short sighted and a major stumbling block to adequate treatment as this point of view extends right to the top levels of government.

[cv23]

CV, I think you took fluffy's post out of context. The staff at Crossroads are NOT government employees.

Just how aren't the members of the BC Government Employees Union who make up the staff at crossroads not government employees?

[Piecemaker]

CV, Crossroad's staff are represented by the Hospital Employee's Union, not BCGEU or IWA, etc.

[normaM]

Back in march they said the centres were closing, not sure why this is News now

[cv23]

CV, Crossroad's staff are represented by the Hospital Employee's Union, not BCGEU or IWA, etc.

Ok then how is it that private hospitals are illegal in BC, legal hospitals are government operated and funded yet the employees of these facilities are not government employees?

[Bsuds]

Maybe because it's not Hospital.

[Piecemaker]

It is a non-profit society running a treatment facility. Unions are another entire topic. Some unions are not very specific these days. "Hospital" does not specifically mean facilities like KGH. "Hospital" is a word used to describe places that treat health-related concerns. An extended care facility, private or public, is a "hospital". There are lots of private "hospitals" in Canada.
The Steelworker's Union, for example, may represent a company that does not actually work with steel but mostly with construction and so on. Some of those construction projects may be contracted by Goverment and some are private enterprise. The workers are not government employees. Why not do some research on Crossroads specifically, rather than post misinformation and red herrings on this thread about unions?

Funding issues are huge for many non-profits everywhere. The ones that have diversified sources of funding ( user-fee payment scales included) fare better. Crossroads has fairly narrow funding. While they have some user-pay clients, most of the clients qualify for public health support. Those with means, attend the more "spa-like" treatment centres in Canada and the USA, not facilities like Crossroads.
By the time someone gets to Crossroads,they have pretty much hit bottom in all areas of their life, including financial.

[theyeti]

well said miss piecemaker

i wonder if the facility has not looked into some other ways of making money . maybe they should start a business .. they have a lot of ppl with out much to do from the sounds of it .. combine there needs with the recovering addicts need to find work . pay addicts a set piece rate to do something . it wouldnt make them alot of money but i bet it comes up with the 40 a day per bed they need

[John500]

Crossroad closing. Government spent tons of money on advertising how good they are. Am I missing something here? SHAME!!!