After some deliberation with the province and Agricultural land Commission (ALC) Carrier Sekani Family Services (CSFC) has announced the plans for a Healing/Treatment Centre Facility on Tachick Lake will move forward.
This progress on the Centre, which will be located where the Tachick Lake Resort is currently located on Saik’uz territory, comes after the ALC approved the area to be utilized for non-farm use.
Currently, the Centre is being planned to have 60 beds that serve the unique needs of local Indigenous residents by forming a tailored service delivery model.
The service model will be medically based and grounded in traditional Carrier and Sekani healing and wellness models.
“We are very happy with the ALC Decision to allow ‘non-farm use’ of the property for operations of the Carrier Sekani Family Services Addiction Recovery Program in the new facility, and will continue to serve future generations,” Said Corrina Leween, Carrier Sekani Family Services Board President and Chief of the Cheslatta Carrier Nation.
The current Addiction Recovery Program (ARP) offers men and women a 4-week program that provides a range of services including grief and loss, trauma, gambling, and Opioid Replacement Therapy.
“The ALC decision allows Carrier Sekani Family Services to move forward in realizing our long-term goals that include healing and treatment that will help address the ongoing
opioid and mental health crises that are disproportionately affecting Indigenous people,” added Leween.
Fundraising for the remaining funds needed to begin construction will be the next step before moving on to the design phase of the construction process.
According to CSFS, the project is crucial to removing barriers to health services and making progress toward fundamental objectives of improved health and wellbeing for Indigenous peoples.