Listed below are some common Myths vs Reality associated with The Open Door 24/7 Integrated Response Hub.

Myth	Reality
"It's a trap house."	Absolutely not, there is 24/7 programming.    The 24/7 Integrated Response Hub, with emergency housing, is a supported environment with wrap around services that are voluntary for participants. It is staffed 24/7, with programming that operates using trauma informed care, and from a person-centered approach with multiple partners providing services, interventions and supports.  No trap houses we know of provide: Emergency housing Case Management and navigation SMART Recovery Youth Support Mental Health Diversion Medical response Addictions supports And various other programs
"There are safety concerns."	Yes, there are.    The Open Door originally looked to purchase a much more suitable building in Wetaskiwin. The City of Wetaskiwin defeated a zoning change that impacted our private real estate deal. Because of the lack of appropriate zoning available in the City of Wetaskiwin, the only building available was the temporary use of the Civic Building while we continued with our other plans. The original numbers provided by the City for the number of individuals serviced over the last couple years was significantly less than began showing up, increasing traffic around the building. The layout of the Civic Building is not conducive to implement the safety protocols we would like to have, however, saving lives has overridden this as we have been building other options in the background.
"There has been no communication."	There has absolutely been communication in multiple forms.    There was and continues to be significant communication before and following the opening of the Hub. There have been videos put out by City of Wetaskiwin and The Open Door as well as social media by The Open Door. Prior to opening in October, The Open Door hosted two community engagement sessions. In December of 2020, it was decided that the City of Wetaskiwin would front the large-scale communication plan, as this was a City of Wetaskiwin years old issue, not an Open Door issue. There was a significant communications plan developed by the City that was never executed.  The Open Door has and continues to engage in communication. Local news, as well as provincial news outlets, have reported on the Hub multiple times.  There have, however, been times when we have not responded to community members. The Open Door has not, nor will they subject their staff to, receiving threatening phone calls in which raised voices and racist comments are directed at them. Following this occurring, procedures were put in place to protect staff from community members accosting staff.  The reality is that this is a long-standing issue embedded in the City of Wetaskiwin. The City of Wetaskiwin has the third highest CSI. Inevitably, there are inherent, city wide safety concerns. The Open Door was part of mitigating this (crime stats were down). The Open Door did not bring safety issues to the City of Wetaskiwin.
"Those people aren't from here"/ "They are bussing people in."	​This is factually incorrect.    A significant portion of people accessing services are Wetaskiwin residents. The individuals we support are sons, daughters, mothers, fathers and even grandparents of residents of the City of Wetaskiwin. What would you do for a loved one in crisis?   Wetaskiwin services a major area. Grocery stores, restaurants, gas stations, etc., all service more than Wetaskiwin residents. Support services within Central Alberta are regionalized -this is common knowledge to service providers and is a result of the rural nature of our area. It is also important to note that Albertans use services all over Alberta depending on their needs. For example, there is not a women’s shelter in Wetaskiwin, but there are in Camrose, Edmonton and Red Deer. There is not a hospital in Millet, but there is one in Wetaskiwin. There is not a detox/ treatment facility in this area, so individuals must leave to access this support. There is not an Ikea, a Home Depot, a Superstore, a Homesense, or an Olive Garden in Wetaskiwin, but there is in Edmonton.  Services are shared across the region.
"They are just enabling over there at The Hub."	Clients are required to participate in programming through the Hub in order to receive services.    The programming clients are currently involved with is determined by their capacity. The Open Door actively promotes capacity building through client care plans. We meet our clients where they are at, which is standard practice for agencies such as ourselves. Humans access the Hub for various reasons including medical needs, mental health needs, addictions, outreach support, etc. All these supports are in one place for the first time and this is rare.  With this being said, speaking to addictions specifically, not everyone is ready to stop using substances, nor can they from a medical or health perspective. Furthermore, we support our clients. We do not stigmatize, so do not force treatment. There are many reasons why someone may be engaged in an addiction that is deeper than the addiction, and requiring sobriety to access services is counterproductive to treatment. Finally, there is more than one path to recovery. Abstinence is not the only way.  Just as the general population is given the choice to seek medical attention, counselling, or cancer care, so are individuals in this population given the opportunity, but are not enabled.  Clients are required to participate in some form of programming in the Hub.
"Their numbers are way too high."	Our numbers are conducive to the number of vulnerable individuals in Wetaskiwin.    ​From November 13, 2020 to June 28, 2021, we have supported 410 unique clients.  Our outpatient/ outreach programming makes up for the largest part of our numbers. We average 45-65 overnight in emergency housing.  COVID has been a monumental factor in driving the need for help as well as homelessness numbers up across Canada.  Just as the Wetaskiwin Hospital provides support regionally, so does programming which draws the bulk of its funding from the province/ federal government. Inadequate resources in rural Central Alberta lead to increased use of centralized urban supports.  Initial numbers in the program will be high until a steady rhythm is established. Our numbers would have decreased over time as we were successfully able to support clients. Instead, these numbers will now be forced onto the streets.
"The Open Door has never provided statistics."	This is factually incorrect. We sure have!   The Open Door’s CEO has been to council more than 12 times to present and has publicly provided statistics.  The Open Door released a 12-week video update with statistics. The Open Door is also required to report statistics to funding sources. Statistics are also shared at interagency meetings.  We regularly share information with the Wetaskiwin Times as well as provincial media. We have participated in Chamber events. We have spoken to businesses. The RCMP and AHS have repeatedly discussed statistics as applied to the Hub publicly. The Open Door sits on the Alberta Rural Coalition on Housing and Homelessness, works with the Rural Development Network and is part of the Canadian Society for Association Executives. The Open Door recently presented at the Canadian Rural and Remote Housing and Homelessness Symposium, releasing staggering medical statistics from the Hub. The Open Door is also part of Frayme and is currently engaged in research with multiple universities.
"The agency doesn't know what they are doing"/ "They don't have trained staff."	Our staff have significant training and experience to effectively mitigate the effects of homelessness.   The Camrose Open Door Association (The Open Door) has existed for almost 25 years. We are a registered not for profit and charity. We are accredited by an external agency (CARF) and follow OHS, Alberta Labor Standards, bylaws, legislations, regulatory bodies, and all the required charity, society act and practice legislations. We are an agency that is governed by a Board of Directors. Our staff have significant training and come from a broad background of education and experience. We employ psychologists, social workers, addictions counsellors, community support workers, nurses, LPN’s, paramedics, and many degrees including criminal justice, psychology, education, etc. We have provided and continue to provide valuable practicum and internship placements within our agency. We value continuing education, and provide ongoing training opportunities for staff, both holistically and program specifically. Our orientation process when onboarding with our agency is extensive and provides a variety of in-depth training.  Training includes, but is not limited to, critical incident reporting, documentation, Naloxone use and overdose response, medication administration, verbal de-escalation and non-violent crisis intervention, suicide intervention, training in complex health and social needs, trauma informed response specific to the program, cultural response specific to the program, ethics, OHS policies, Health and Safety, and a review of the entire policy manual.
“Self Identified Hub Clients”/ “Hub Clients”/ “Those people."	The clients accessing our services are first and foremost, humans.    Clients are citizens of Alberta and of the City of Wetaskiwin. They are family members and members of a community. The Hub does not own the clients. Stigmatizing clients into groups (“these people”) is dangerous stereotyping.
“The Hub condones the use of illicit substances”/ “The Hub allows the selling of illicit substances within programming."	The Open Door does not condone or promote the use or trade of illicit substances. Ever.    The Open Door actively works alongside law enforcement to both share information and intervene to reduce the trafficking and use of illicit substances. Our programming is a direct response to supporting individuals to leave this lifestyle. We do not condone the use any more than a hospital does.
"The 'shelter' is in the wrong place."	​You bet it is!    First, it is not a shelter. As we have continually articulated, we operate a private housing program. If it was a government funded shelter, it would be funded and operated in a licensed building. The government is not funding shelters right now. Because of this, the unique ability for The Open Door to secure funding due to historical operations and internal capacity meant that we were able to drive critical and life saving support into Wetaskiwin much faster than typical.  Secondly, we were working on the development of a number of different options for another facility. There have been consistent barriers that have been put in place by the City that have impacted the materialization of plans developed in partnerships with other agencies and funding supports.    While the Hub is in the wrong place, we have been working towards a more suitable option since August of 2020, before the Hub even opened, all while developing and implementing significant programming to respond to the monumental crisis in Wetaskiwin. Evicting the Hub from the building, with no other plan ready for materialization, will monumentally impact the safety and well being of the City of Wetaskiwin.
“The Hub facilitates drinking on premises."	We sure do: water/ juice/ milk/ tea/ coffee! That is all. When we see alcohol, it is disposed of.
"These people should just change."	​It is difficult to make progress when the support services needed to do so are taken away.   All humans have the capacity for change. However, change is slow and is sometimes dependent on other factors. Most importantly, people have to be ready, willing and with the internal capacity to change.    What is your least favorite quality about yourself? Now imagine society came along and decided that that quality needed to change RIGHT NOW. And when you finally started trying, they didn’t like how slow they perceived you were going and started badgering and judging you. And you are hopeful in trying your very best. How would you feel? Now complicate that with the supports you were using to change being removed suddenly,    According to the transtheoretical model of change, with a destabilizing event such as losing housing and support, many clients may experience the return of a trauma flooded brain in which survival is their primary and may return to medical crisis. A trauma flooded brain does not have the capacity to make decisions from a place of logic and respect.
“The police are not allowed in the building or within a block radius."	Absolutely untrue.    The RCMP and CPO’s regularly attend our site for various reasons; not all are criminal. The RCMP have established relationships with staff and clients and are one of our closest partners. They both provide foot patrols outside our building and are regularly inside our building. The RCMP actively provides us with training and education.  The Open Door operates a mental health diversion program which works directly alongside the RCMP and court system.  The Open Door regularly intervenes or provides services to individuals who have experienced domestic violence, trafficking, exploitation, assault, sexual assault and various other crimes. As such, we work closely with Victims Services.  At last count, we have successfully diverted 7 sons and daughters of Wetaskiwin parents away from being trafficked and from becoming a statistic and just a memory to their parents and families.