COTA Health and Community Resource Connections of Toronto (CRCT) have received funding from the Scarborough Addiction Services Partnership (SASP) to increase Scarborough residents’ access to concurrent disorder services. This new initiative will increase the capacity of these agencies by:

• Assisting staff and peer leaders to build and improve their skills to work individually and in groups with clients experiencing CD;
• Developing a guideline manual and frame work that the agencies can use when providing groups for CD clients;
• Facilitating an eight-week pilot project of the group in English based on the manual developed;
• Utilizing a diversity framework and working towards making CD services more inclusive to members of ethno-racial communities and to people who do not speak English as a first language.

Funding was first approved in December 2007. The project is scheduled to start in April 2008 and end in March 2009. Currently, the project is looking for consumer/survivors to be part of the project steering committee. COTA Health and CRCT are committed to having the meaningful participation of service users throughout this project, including the development, implementation and evaluation phases.

For more information, please contact Zarsanga Popal at 416-482-4103 Ext. 222.

By Zarsanga Popal — Community
Resource Connections of Toronto