“we want to establish one-of-a-kind programming where the best of western medicine co-exists with traditional and land-based healing,” said llrib chief tammy cook-searson.
but even with the wellness centre’s 24 new beds, people in la ronge looking to get into addictions or mental health treatment still face long waitlists. in october, johnson said, she had tried to help one of her shelter clients get into a detox program. he thought he might be ready to get sober.
“unfortunately, by the time the call came in for him to have a bed, it had been over a month,” she said. “and he had already gone somewhere else. he missed his opportunity.”
‘we need a permanent solution’
lac la ronge indian band chief tammy cook-searson stands for a photograph near lac la ronge lake in april 2016.
liam richards
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saskatoon starphoenix
along with building more resources, la ronge has to fight to keep existing ones.
scattered site’s overnight shelter has no long-term funding. instead, the money comes from different sources year by year. that constant scramble to keep the doors open has made it hard to build a stable, sustainable program. it makes it more difficult to find staff, too, since potential employees can’t count on long-term employment.
with how necessary the shelter is to la ronge, hordyski says this precarious situation can’t go on like this forever.