Timmins taking pro-active approach to addictions and homelessness
City of Timmins officials said they want to help its community partners when it comes to negotiating with upper levels of government in addressing the high rates of homelessness and deaths from drug overdoses.
"We have a public health emergency on our hands here and having all hands on deck is important so we can move as swiftly as we can," said Dave Landers, chief administrative officer for the city of Timmins.
As Timmins moves ahead with implementing a 'Community Safety and Well-Being Plan' and establishing the 'Safe Health Site Timmins', one of the key people on the deck will be Meagan Baranyk, a woman with front-line experience who has been hired as the community strategies coordinator for the city.
"My main role to is basically to understand current services. There’s a lot of agencies in Timmins and every one is working so well, but it’s about blending them together and let’s work well and not as silos," said Baranyk.
"We see a lot of gaps in mandates that different service providers have and so people fall through the gaps … and so by helping agencies work together by making sure we identify need and bring services to bare where that need is we should be better served," added Landers.
Baranyk will coordinate with organizations such as the Porcupine Health Unit, Timmins and District Hospital and Cochrane District Social Services Administration Board and report back to the city.
Over the next six months, she said she's planning to design some key strategies.
"Timmins is very fortunate to have very strong collaborations so it’s really easy coming into this role knowing that we’re just coming together and we just have to work collaboratively to address the issues that we’re all facing in our city," said Baranyk.
Landers said he's excited for where this approach will take Timmins, especially longer-term, as it moves towards having more preventative and less responsive actions when it comes to addressing issues facing vulnerable people.
Correction
The original article stated Meagan Baranyk is a social worker in error. This has been corrected.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
Multiple bridges in Calgary shut down for police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
Baby boom amongst nurses leads to maternity ward closure in Listowel, Ont.
The emergency room at Listowel’s hospital is open today, but come summer, their obstetrics unit will be temporarily closing its delivery rooms.
Humboldt Broncos bus crash survivor qualifies Canada for Paralympics in rowing event
Former Humboldt Broncos goaltender and bus crash survivor Jacob Wassermann has qualified Canada for a rowing event for the 2024 Paralympic games in Paris.
Krispy Kreme doughnuts coming to McDonald's in U.S., but not Canada
Canadians will be missing out on a sweet new partnership between McDonald's and Krispy Kreme, which will see doughnuts available at McDonald's locations across the U.S. by the end of 2026.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.