Psychiatrist Dr. Anthony Barale said the province never provided the funding, housing, or services to support the devolution of the massive mental-health hospital on the Lower Mainland. The health authority and Health Ministry have known that for years, he said.
"There will always be a population who will never integrate into society on an independent or semi-independent basis," said Barale. He recently resigned as clinical director of the Archie Courtnall Centre for psychiatric emergencies.
Premier Gordon Campbell, speaking at the Union of B.C. Municipalities convention in Victoria, said "over the last 20 years [deinstitutionalization] has been a failure.
"The people that we were trying to take care of have not been taken care of the way they should be. So I think there's work to be done there."
Mayors applauded the admission, and psychiatrist Dr. Andre Masters said in an interview: "Good for him, now when will we see the money?"
The devolution of Riverview, starting in 1987, was supposed to place mental-health patients back in their hometowns. The premier admitted communities have signalled problems with that plan since the mid-1990s. He promised mayors and councillors mental health would be a "major item on our agenda.''
"De-institutionalization was supposed to assure that there were community facilities that were available. They have not been available," said Campbell.
The premier promised to improve care and support, including incentives to create new facilities.
Health Minister George Abbott said since the Liberals in 2002 provided $138 million in capital funding to build replacement beds, there have been "tremendous" successes -- including the 24 new mental-health-care beds created at Seven Oaks in Saanich, and 40 new beds in Sandringham Care Centre in Victoria, a geriatric mental-health care home.