Achi news desk-
Alberta will soon have two new organizations to support mental health and addiction services.
The first, called Recovery Alberta, will be operational later this year and will take over the provision of mental health and addiction services currently provided by Alberta Health Services (AHS).
The second new organization, announced Tuesday, is the Canadian Center for Recovery Excellence (CoRE).
The UCP says CoRE will support the government to build “recovery-focused care systems” by “researching best practices for recovery from around the world, analyzing data and making evidence-based recommendations.”
More about Alberta Recovery
Alberta announced in November 2023 that it would refocus provincial health care with the creation of four new organizations.
The Alberta Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions began consolidating the mental health and addiction services within AHS in August 2023, and says the process is complete by November 2023.
Recovery Alberta will report to the Ministry of Mental Health and Addiction.
The province expects Recovery Alberta to be fully operational by the summer of 2024 and will operate with an annual budget of $1.13 billion.
Although the UCP says timelines depend on legislative amendments that have yet to be introduced, the Ministry of Mental Health and Addiction aims to have Recovery Alberta’s corporate structure in place by June 3.
Following the establishment of the corporate structure and executive team, staff and services would begin operating under the Recovery Alberta banner on July 1.
More about CoRE
The UCP says CoRE will “inform best practices in mental health and addiction, conduct research and program evaluation and support the development of evidence-based policies for mental health and addiction.”
CoRE will be established as a crown corporation through legislation introduced this spring.
The UCP has committed $5 million through Budget 2024 to support the establishment of CoRE.
It is anticipated that it will be operational by this summer.
Minister for Mental Health and Addiction Dan Williams says the the establishment of the two new organizations will “support the delivery of recovery-focused services to Albertans and will further cement Alberta as a leader in the field.”
Meanwhile, Health Minister Adriana LaGrange says the goal is to have “robust support systems for addiction recovery and mental health treatment.
“Giving Albertans living with mental health or addiction the opportunity to pursue recovery and live a contributing life is the responsible and compassionate thing to do,” said Smith.
Engagement sessions
Williams will hold four engagement sessions with AHS staff to provide additional information about Recovery Alberta.
Virtual engagement sessions for AHS staff and service providers will be held on:
- April 11 at 6:30pm;
- April 16 at 10 am;
- April 17 at 6:30 pm, a
- April 22 at 10 am
