B.C. Minister of Health Josie Osborne says the first people to use the new beds will move in as early as next week.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
British Columbia’s government has created 18 new beds at a Metro Vancouver mental health facility dedicated to long-term involuntary care.
Health Minister Josie Osborne says the new beds at Alouette Homes in Maple Ridge, B.C., are designed for people needing involuntary care under the Mental Health Act outside the justice system.
Osborne also says the government is now reviewing the act itself to identify possible service gaps and potential solutions.
The announcement comes after the province announced in April the opening of a 10-unit involuntary-care facility for people with addiction and mental health issues at the Surrey Pretrial Centre.
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The Surrey facility is meant to treat people in jail who have a combination of mental health challenges, brain injuries and addiction concerns.
B.C. Premier David Eby said at the time that the unit was meant to stop people continually cycling through the justice system without getting better.
Dr. Daniel Vigo, B.C.’s chief scientific adviser for psychiatry, toxic drugs and concurrent disorders, says the care offered by Alouette Homes will be the first of its kind in the province.
Vigo says the new beds provide an alternative to the current setup, where patients are “stuck in high-security hospital units indeterminately” because of a lack of other options.
Osborne says the first people to use the new beds will move in as early as next week.
