Methadone Withdrawal Units in BC

For someone living with chronic pain there is nothing worse than finding out your have now become completely dependent on your opiate-based prescriptions. Your body has become tolerant to the drugs and you find yourself constantly increasing your medication just keep your pain tolerable or your withdrawal symptoms away. Your doctor who is supposed to be monitoring you just keeps writing you the scripts for more, stronger drugs rather than suggesting it’s time to wean you off these medications and send you to holistic or non-narcotic pain management alternatives. This medication mismanagement has become a problem for many people who never thought they would end up having an addiction.

Unfortunately, this problem is worse that we thought. After you have decided you no longer want to be on the medications, the average person will ask their general practitioner or prescribing physician that they would like to stop taking these medications. One of two options happen – the patient is sent to a medically supervised withdrawal unit within their local health authority (e.g. VCH, FVA, VIHA) where they will spend an average of 5-14 days going through withdrawal. The other option is to be prescribed the anti-craving drug methadone.

Once on methadone, a patient starts a minimum dose, which is increased until the client is stabilized. Eventually, most clients on a methadone maintenance program will want to stop using it. They will find that Methadone is incredibly difficult to stop using. Once on this anti-craving drug there are few programs that will provide you treatment for your addiction or any withdrawal units to help you come off the drugs completely. The withdrawal symptoms from methadone have been described as being worse than opiates themselves.

After contacting each of the major detox units in each of the five health authorities we have discovered that most withdrawal units will want you to be on little to no methadone in order to help you through your withdrawal.

Medically Supervised Withdrawal Units in the five BC Health Authorities

 

NORTHERN HEALTH AUTHORITY

Adult Withdrawal Management Unit

1308 Alward St.
Prince George, BC V2M 7B1
 Phone: (250) 565-2175
Must be 30mg or less to go to this withdrawal unit

VANCOUVER ISLAND HEALTH AUTHORITY

Victoria Medical Society

Eric Martin Pavillion, 5A-2334 Trent St.
Victoria, BC V8R 4Z3
Main Phone: (250) 519-7708 Intake 
Phone: (250) 213-4441
Must be 25mg or less to go to this withdrawal unit

INTERIOR HEALTH AUTHORITY

Phoenix Centre

922 3rd Avenue, 
Kamloops, BC V2C 6W5
Phone: (250) 374-4634
 Text: (250) 320-0341 (M-F 9am-3:30pm)
 Toll-Free: 1(877) 318-1177
 Fax: (250) 374-4621
Must be 30mg or less to go to this withdrawal unit

VANCOUVER COASTAL HEALTH AUTHORITY

Access Central
Toll-free: 1(866) 658-1221
Note: for referrals to detox and supportive recovery housing. Access Central is staffed with social workers who can provide on-the-spot counselling and coping strategies. Hours are 9 am to 7:45 pm seven days a week. Messages left on voice mail will be returned the following day.
Must not be on Methadone

Harbour Light Detox (Cordova Detox)
Salvation Army
119 East Cordova St.
Vancouver, BC V6A 1K8
Phone: (604) 646-6808 ext. 2
 Toll-Free: 1(866) 658-1221 ext. 2 
Fax: (604) 646-6840

Vancouver Detox
377 East 2nd Ave.
Vancouver, BC V5T 1B9
Phone: (604) 658-1280 (non-admissions calls) 
Phone: 1(866) 658-1221 (Access Central – Admissions)

FRASER VALLEY HEALTH AUTHORITY

Creekside Withdrawal Management Centre
13740 94 A Avenue
Surrey, BC V3V 1N1
Phone: (604) 587-3755 ext.1 (adults)
 Phone: (604) 587-3755 ext.2 (youth)
Must be at 10mg or less to go to this withdrawal unit

 

For more information on finding treatment resources for yourself or someone you know please call 1-877-746-1963 or email info@canadadrugrehab.ca or visit our directory on the web www.canadadrugrehab.ca