Covid-19 Information

During the COVID resurgence, CATC is committed to keeping our staff, patients, and communities healthy and safe. We are following or have implemented all Public Health Guidelines set forth for health care professionals. This means we are NOT closing our doors, in fact we are stepping up to the challenge, minimizing the negative impacts of the opioid epidemic and the COVID outbreak on those who need our CARE the most.

Our physicians, nurses, pharmacists and staff are AWESOME. They are working hard every day, demonstrating unwavering optimism and compassion at a time of uncertainty and concern.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Are your clinics open?
A: Yes, all CATC affiliated clinics remain open.

Q: Do I have to come to clinic to receive treatment?
A: Yes, unless you have been identified as COVID+ or identified by public health as high risk, it is very unlikely that your typical treatment plan or process will change.

Q: What about my ‘carries’? Do I need to leave a urine test?
A: Yes, regular clinic procedures are still in place. We are following the CPSO guidelines for urine samples and appointments and taking every precaution necessary to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Q: What have you done about COVID-19 in your clinic?
A: We have re-organized the waiting room and treatment rooms to facilitate social distancing. We continue to streamline patient flow to prioritize minimum time spent in the waiting area. There is hand sanitizer available throughout the facility. We have a separate room where any patients experiencing symptoms can receive care. Staff will not be working in-person if they have any symptoms.

Q: What should I do if I am sick?
A: Please call before coming in, so that we can advise you on what to do. Patients displaying or disclosing symptoms to staff are given a mask, proper hand hygiene is followed by both staff and patients and should they need to see their doctor, are asked to wait in a separate room. In some cases, we will alter your care to help minimize the spread of infection.

Q: What if the CATC staff and doctors get sick?
A: We have created ways for the doctors to help you virtually or by phone should it be necessary.  We have put several measures in place to keep our teams healthy and we have plans in place to keep our patients cared for.  Your Doctor may continue to provide virtual visits during the re-opening phase.  We are confident all the measures we have been using are working well to keep all staff, doctors and patients safe and healthy.

Q: I’m really worried and I don’t know what to do.
A: Call us at 1-877-937-2282. Our CARE Coordinators are standing by to help you navigate this challenging time and find the treatment, support and resources you may need.

Important Numbers During this Time

Telehealth – 1-866-797-0000
Drugs and Alcohol Helpline – 1-866-531-2600

Public Health & Crisis Line – Each region has their own line, ask your front-line staff for the direct number.

June 5th, 2020

Keeping our patients safe and cared for during COVID

To our valued patients:

Thank you for staying committed to your recovery during these challenging times. We are very proud of our staff who adapted quickly to be able to continue to provide the best addiction care possible and are very proud of our patients for showing patience and kindness as we figured out how to provide care while “social distancing”. As the Province begins its re-open, we are taking all the steps to make certain that our patients continue to be cared for in a safe manner; i.e. increase cleaning, a continued emphasis on social distancing, and a requirement that staff and patients wear marks when interacting directly.

I want to assure you that CATC is taking a gradual approach to our “return to usual” clinical programming.  Specifically, the first phase of transition will be focused on patients who are showing signs that they need a little more attention, i.e. missed appointments, missed doses, POS UDS.  The stress of the current environment is hard on everyone and we are committed to supporting you through it.  We encourage anyone who is struggling to reach out to the clinic; we are here to listen and support.

We continue to be committed to:

• Ensuring physical distancing is maintained between patients
• Reducing the patient volume in our waiting rooms (limits on appointments per hour)
• Continuing hourly disinfecting and enhanced cleaning measures
• Most importantly, your success in recovery
  

We acknowledge that these changes may be frustrating for some and thank you in advance for helping us work through this. If you have questions, please call our toll-free number (877) 937-­2282 (1-877-WE-R-CATC) and we will set up a phone call between you and your doctor.

This too will pass; stay strong and stay well.

With kindness,
Sonya Lockyer
CEO CATC
slockyer@canatc.ca

Dr. Mike Franklyn ~ Addiction physician, Health Sciences North, Sudbury.

Dr. Michael Franklyn wears many hats in the field of medicine. As a family doctor in Sudbury for almost 25 years, Dr. Franklyn recalls fearing for the life of a female patient in 2002; she was using methadone and forced to travel weekly to Toronto for care. With only one addiction specialist in Sudbury at the time, the wait list for local treatment was about two years. “Then, I had no background in addiction medicine. But out of my complete frustration with the inability to get help for her in the north, I had to go learn about addiction care and it has since become a huge part of my life and my practice,” he said.

As a family doctor and Associate Professor at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM), Dr. Franklyn says about 70 per cent of his time is now focused specifically on addiction medicine. While his home base is in Sudbury, Dr. Franklyn is one of several doctors who fly into remote northwestern Ontario First Nations to treat patients in their home communities, where no other treatment is offered. He also uses OTN to service 13 remote communities in northwestern Ontario.

In Sudbury, Dr. Franklyn is Medical Director of the local Rapid Access Addictions Medicine (RAAM) Clinic, one of seven in Ontario. As the only clinic of its kind in the north, Dr. Franklyn notes it as a “very successful model” where patients with any type of addiction can be seen by an addiction expert within 48 hours. The clinic, which opened in December 2015, was originally funded as a provincial pilot program to offer individuals dealing with addictions earl and assertive treatment, while alleviating burdens on other points of care.

Franklyn noted the financial benefits (of treating addictions) to the province’s health-care system. Treating patients at the RAAM Clinic has demonstrated reduction in their use of local ambulance services, emergency room visits, detox and in-patient admissions. “These are all very expensive interventions,” he said. “By addressing the underlying cause of addition, we dramatically reduce utilization of the system, and are actually doing something that is likely to help the patient.”

According to statistics from the Canadian Centre for Substance Abuse, addiction is a health issue that impacts millions of Canadians. It causes harm to individuals, families and communities. Conservative estimates (from the 2012 Canadian Community Health Survey) found that 4.4 per cent of Canadians met the criteria for a substance-use disorder. Dr. Franklyn adds that there are almost 50,000 people in the province on methadone, and that that only one in three people who are dependent on opiates are seeking help. “The situation is fundamentally worse and more complex than it was just two years ago,” he said.

In what Franklyn calls the current “opiate crisis,” it’s important now more than ever to jump in with both feet. While working in remote fly-in northern First Nations communities his team will spend an entire week with a group of patients addressing their addictions. People lives are literally transformed in the week that starts their recovery journey.

For Dr. Franklyn and his colleagues, seeing the impact they have on people’s lives is the most rewarding aspect of the work. “I love everything I do…but there’s too much to do,” he said.

When asked what keeps him going back to work each day, Dr. Franklyn says it’s the triumph. “There are times where this field of medicine is incredibly frustrating, but just seeing the successes is what keeps you going.”

Originally published on the Ontario Medical Association’s Spotlight on Health.

Written by Dr. John Crosby – November 28, 2017 for canadianhealthcarenetwork.ca

I recently had lunch with Dr. Andrew Worster, an old friend from my emergency days 25 years ago. He works at an opioid addiction clinic in Cambridge, Ont., and still does ER shifts at Hamilton General Hospital. He works in the ER one or two eight-10-hour shifts per week but doesn’t do night shifts any more so he enjoys the two jobs. He has been practising for 26 years and also runs a non-profit corporation called BEEM — Best Evidence in Emergency Medicine — which conducts evidence-based emergency medicine courses for emergency doctors worldwide.

Andrew works in the addiction clinic on Monday morning and all day Wednesday. It is a private business and they help patients get healthcare cards He says that 70% of the patients are functioning, with jobs and families.

Many patients start with chronic pain and about 50% work at physically demanding jobs, hence, they use opioids to get through the day’s work as their bodies are wearing out on the job. They start small and gradually require higher and higher doses for relief.

Andrew said he feels opioids are sometimes appropriate for short-term severe pain but not for non-cancer chronic pain.

Andrew noted that doctors and the patients have to accept that in life there will be pain. In the ER, he often gets patients who tell him that their GP has done nothing for their back pain. For ER patients with severe, debilitating pain, he sometimes uses ketamine (15mg I.V. over 15 minutes) to break the cycle of pain and spasm but does not prescribe opioids upon discharge… Click here to read the entire article.

Photo credit: Google.

Event happened at This Ain’t Hollywood in downtown Hamilton tonight.

“Ace Piva knows the dangers of opioid addiction all too well.

He’s seen it up close — both as a tour manager across Canada, and as an addictions counsellor in Hamilton.

Now, as overdoses and deaths due to opioid use continue to mount across the city, Piva has launched an addiction and recovery nonprofit organization specifically for the music industry. It’s called Over the Bridge — a nod to the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ breakout hit Under the Bridge, which was written about addiction, loneliness and dependency.

Tonight, Piva is hosting a naloxone training and overdose prevention awareness event at This Ain’t Hollywood, in an effort to save lives in an industry where the party rarely stops…”

By Adam Carter, CBC News – Read full story on CBC website, here.