Just recently, John Douglas and Wes Hewitt from the Port Alberni Shelter Society visited the recovery community of San Patrignano. Their goal was to learn what makes this recovery model so successful, and how could they bring this inspiration back to Port Alberni.
The residents at San Patrignano Community stay an average of 3-4 years in which they learn to overcome hardships through honesty, commitment, respect for themselves and for others, and by developing solidarity and interpersonal skills.
San Pat’s prevention projects also help participants develop new skills, training and responsibilities. Artisans, craftsmen and industry professionals can discover (or rediscover in some cases) their potential through agriculture, baking, media work, carpentry, medical and dental work, electrical work, farming, graphic design, textiles, hospitality and more. In fact, during their stay, John and Wes helped a group of students make wallpaper!
John Douglas has recently produced a comprehensive report to highlight the benefit of Therapeutic Community Models as a way of working towards solutions for Port Alberni.
To read “Addiction and Therapeutic Recovery Models: Working Towards a Solution” by John Douglas please click here: TherpeuticCommunityReport(1)
