Withdrawal management services (detox)

If you or someone you know needs withdrawal management or if you have questions about it, you can call:

• Access Central at 1 (866) 658-1221 if you live in the Vancouver Coastal Health Region (or)
• Lighthouse Virtual Substance Use Clinic at (604) 806-8223 or 1 (877) 842-8884 

These teams will do a same-day clinical assessment over the phone and help you find the best service for you. They will also support you while you wait for your admission. We know relapse can happen, so this may need to be to the first step for you or someone you know many times before moving forward. 

If you live or spend time on the Sunshine Coast, qathet Withdrawal Services can be accessed at (604) 485-3354. 

Withdrawal management is a short-term service that can be supported in different places, including community, hospital or withdrawal management site, or at home (with clinical team support). In general, people with opioid addiction can go through detox as outpatients, which means clients don't stay overnight.  

Places where withdrawal management (detox) takes place includes:  

• at a place where you will stay and sleep for up to one week (inpatient), and receive social and medical support and supervision to help you through your period of withdrawal. Examples of these services include Vancouver Detox and Withdrawal Management at qathet Hospital.
• at a community health clinic or OAT clinic (outpatient), where you receive planned withdrawal and substance stabilization services while staying at home, in the community on an outpatient basis.
• at home, with clinical support. An example is Lighthouse, which is a free, phone-based clinic that uses telephone appointments to provide medical treatment and short-term stabilization for people who use substances.  

Detox is one type of substance use (addiction) treatment. Detox is the process of removing toxins, such as drugs, from the body. There is no set time frame for detox to be completed. For some, the process will take a few hours or days. For others, it may take weeks to clear the body of the substance completely. 

There are risks with “detoxing” from opioids too quickly. When people go through withdrawal management alone with no other treatment, research shows they are at a higher risk for overdose (since they have less tolerance to opioids), HIV and Hepatitis C infection and relapse to opioid use.  

For most people, it is safest to have a period of stabilization with medication rather than a “rapid detox.” 

Detox is just one treatment option for substance use (addiction). Substance use (addiction) treatment can involve many different services depending on a person’s goals and preferences. People often access more than one type of service and will find what works for them throughout their recovery journey. 

Don’t know where to start or what might be right for you?  

Call Access Central today to access detox or any substance use treatment if you live in the Vancouver Coastal Health region.