CTV Saskatoon

Date: Tuesday Jan. 10, 2012 6:04 PM CST

The Saskatoon Health Region plans to lay off one of three youth addictions counselors at the Saskatoon Mental Health and Youth Addictions Centre. The move comes following a review of spending in all health region programs.

But the decision has attracted some criticism from groups across the city, including the Health Sciences Association of Saskatchewan. Karen Wasylenko, from the HSAS, says eliminating a counselor is an ill-advised plan. “There are other options here that the region could’ve addressed.”

Wasylenko says youth are waiting more than one month to get in to see a counselor, and with only two available she now expects the wait time to double, which could be dangerous. She says waiting may give teens who have made the tough decision to get help enough time to change their minds about treatment.

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