Regina getting new detox centre

Alcoholics and drug addicts in crisis who used to end up in Regina's police cells or emergency wards will soon have a new detox centre to go.

On Thursday, the Regina Qu'Appelle Health Region unveiledits new 45-bed Addiction Treatment Centre at 1640 Victoria Ave. It is scheduled to open at the beginning of April.

The $7.7-million brick building located just east of the downtown has 25 beds for people who require 10- to 15-day stays. It takes the place of an existing centre in the area.

There's another section with 20 beds for short-term stays something new for Regina.

"It will provide a service for people who sadly, all too often right now, end up in either jail cells or emergency rooms at the Regina General or Pasqua Hospital," health region president Dwight Nelson said.

The new facility will offer addiction assessments, individual treatment and group counselling services, access to visiting health-care professionals, Alcoholic Anonymous meetings and other services.

The new facility will also work with addicts who still live in their own homes, helping them with counselling and long-term treatment plans before they go back to their regular lives, Nelson said.