2018-19 Annual Report

Message from the Board Chair & Executive Director

The 2018-2019 fiscal year was another very busy one for Addiction Services for York Region (ASYR). We continue to be committed to provide the best possible programs and services for people affected by addictions.

In 2018-2019, the agency considered its strategic plan. As part of this process, ASYR reached out to its staff and community partners to hear their perspectives. We are grateful to everyone who participated and provided us with feedback on our work. Your input was important and we hope that you will find your suggestions reflected in our new Mission, Vision and Values.

Our new Mission is upbeat and recognizes the importance of offering hope as we work with our clients through providing outstanding service and innovation:

Uniting to offer hope and promote recovery through outstanding service and innovation.

We believe our new Vision provides the broad framework for all of our work. We know that many people affected by addictions have experienced trauma. We see our new Vision recognizing the importance of creating a safe place for people to have the opportunity to heal:

A world where all people have the opportunity to heal.

Based on what we heard from everyone involved in the discussions, our updated Values will provide a framework from which we must consider all of our work:

Respect – We respect, honour and champion all who walk through our doors
Inclusivity – We are inclusive and celebrate unique strengths  and diverse communities
Flexibility – We offer flexible, person-centred care
Access – We work to ensure access to programs and services
Quality – We seek feedback from clients, partners, staff and the community to improve our programs and services

Strategic Directions

We also reviewed our Strategic Directions. Much has changed since our 2013 Five-Year Strategic Plan was developed. ASYR has grown and transformation is taking place within the health system in Ontario.

We considered our current work, conversations over the last few years with our major funder and our work with community partners. We believe our new Strategic Directions provide us with a roadmap for the next three years as we move forward:

• Organizational Excellence
• Service Expansion
• Strategic Partnerships and Collaboration
• Building Awareness

Organizational Excellence

During the last year, ASYR has been working hard on strengthening its work in Quality Improvement. As this work continues, we look forward to increasing our QI initiatives and to providing an opportunity for clients and community partners to provide feedback on this important work.

We are also committed to increasing our understanding of anti-oppression and anti-racism (AOAR). Our Cultural Responsiveness, Equity and Inclusivity (CREI) Committee worked with a consultant earlier in the fiscal year to design a two-day training session for staff. This was an important session and ASYR continues to work on the results.

We recognize this is a journey. More work needs to be done, and we look forward to the continued leadership, commitment and support of the CREI Committee to strengthen our understanding and commitment to AOAR practices.
Our newly established Wellness Committee was successful in starting to implement Wellness initiatives for our staff. We look forward to our Wellness Committee providing more opportunities for staff in the future.

We know there is more work to be done to improve our organizational excellence. We are committed to collaborating together with staff, community partners and the Board to develop a roadmap that will help us achieve this strategic direction.

Service Expansion

A new satellite office for ASYR

As part of the commitment to our funder, ASYR opened a new satellite office to serve South Simcoe residents. Based in the Millpond Medical Centre, ASYR now has a strong team of clinicians that are offering a wide range of service in South Simcoe.

ASYR continues to work with our partners in North York West to confirm a location for a satellite office. We hope to open one in 2020.

RAAM Clinics

ASYR continues to offer Rapid Access Addictions Medicine (RAAM) Clinics in a number of Central LHIN hospitals. ASYR is pleased to work in partnership with six hospitals to offer this service. We are committed to finding innovative ways to expand RAAM clinics in the community and work with community partners to find innovative ways to access this service.

Building Awareness

ASYR was pleased to be the recipient of a grant from Gambling Research Exchange Ontario to develop and implement a public awareness and education campaign on problem gambling. This funding enabled ASYR to partner with York Region Transit to bring awareness and education about gambling to potential clients.

We know that we have a lot more work to do to build awareness of our programs and services; we will continue to seek opportunities to do this.

Strategic Partnerships and Collaborations

With the announcement of changes in the health system in early 2019, ASYR has been actively involved in a variety of planning tables to bring the voice of addictions.

ASYR was deeply involved in the development of five full applications to establish Ontario Health Teams as a signatory partner. ASYR was also invited to collaborate on two additional submissions.

The planning for these Ontario Health Teams has provided an opportunity for many different organizations in health care to come together to develop a system that will respond to the health needs of Ontarians, no matter which door they walk in.

At the time of writing, the government has not announced which submissions have been approved to move to the next step. Nonetheless, this is very important work and reflects our commitment to continue active involvement so that people affected by addictions will be able to access programs and services across the health system.

Thank You

We would be remiss if we didn’t thank each and every staff member for their continued commitment to our clients. Your willingness to work with clients on their journey is very much appreciated. We will continue to work hard to provide you with the resources you need to continue your outstanding work.

We would also like to thank our Board Members. Your leadership and commitment to our Mission, Vision, Values and Strategic Directions is so important to our success.

Thank you to the Central LHIN, the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services, the Regional Municipality of York and the former Gambling Research Exchange Ontario for the financial support provided for our work.

To our community partners, your involvement, support and belief in our work is so much appreciated. We look forward to continuing to partner together as we strengthen our ability to connect care for our clients.

Allan Hoyle – Chair, Board of Directors   |     Penny Marrett – Executive Director