~ CONTACTS ~

SERVICES:

COMMUNITY HEALTH PROGRAM (Cherisa)

COMMUNITY PROGRAMS (Irwin)

• A Monday drop-in service which includes a meal, a safe place, and TTC tokens
• A Wednesday recreational visual arts drop-in service
• Volunteer opportunities
• Clothing distribution
• Harm reduction materials
• And twice a month access to a nurse as well as an I.D clinic

FEDERAL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM (Seth)

HCV FEDERAL PRISON PROGRAM (Annika)

HCV PROVINCIAL PRISON PROGRAM (Stephanie)
This program partners with the Provincial Prison Program to coordinate Hep C and harm reduction support and advocacy in the Ontario provincial system outside of the GTA. We offer regular educational programming and 1-on-1 visits at Central North CC and Maplehurst CC. We also collaborate with ASOs and Hepatitis C Teams across Ontario to offer effective prison inreach at local jails and to engage prisoners and ex-prisoners in programming and resource design, delivery and evaluation.

HOUSING AND REINTEGRATION PROGRAM (Dora)
This program assists clients in linking with community resources and monitors developments in order to assess where further support is required. This program works with Federal and Provincial prisoners 6 months pre-release and continues until 6 months post-release. The main issues for clients in this program are replacing or obtaining identification, income support, healthcare and housing support, as well as parole preparation. This program has built numerous partnerships cross-sector and maintains these connections.

PROGRAM COORDINATOR (Mooky)

PROVINCIAL PRISON PROGRAM (Kelly)
This program coordinates harm reduction support and advocacy in the Ontario provincial system outside of the GTA with regular educationals and 1-on-1 visits at Central North CC, Central East CC, Maplehurst CC and Elgin-Middlesex DC. This program has a large training component to it; working with local ASOs to increase their capacity to effectively work with their local jails. HIV non-disclosure charges have increased tremendously over the last year and we are seeing people being charged for protected sex, oral, spitting and even hand jobs. The use of the criminal law against HIV-positive people seems to be expanding, despite community-based efforts to regulate these charges. We have been successfully engaged in a partnership with the healthcare branch of corrections and are working to improve communication between the community and healthcare units through dialogue and information exchange.

REGIONAL PRISON OUTREACH AND EDUCATION PROGRAM (Eveline)
This program focuses on the three Toronto correctional facilities; the Toronto (Don) Jail, the Metro East Detention Centre and the Metro West Detention Centre. At these three institutions, I offer group HIV/HCV prevention education programs run in a harm reduction format (60 per year), individual prevention programs for those not comfortable attending a group, or who have questions after a program regarding their specific risks. HIV positive prisoners (incarcerated or in the community) can also access support, counselling and referrals either through one to one contact or over the phone.
This program highlights what can happen on a weekly basis as prisoners get an ‘aha’ moment, and during evaluations discuss what behaviours they are going to change based on the information they learned, i.e. how to put a condom on correctly, not sharing razors or toothbrushes, using their own mouth piece/stem for smoking crack, waiting until release to get a tattoo, using alternatives to injecting, accessing condoms while incarcerated etc.

WOMEN'S COMMUNITY PROGRAM (Keisha)
The program was born out of a need to support women coming out of prison and to increase the capacity of PASAN to serve women and Trans people who are affected by HIV/AIDS and criminalization/ incarceration. We provide individual and group support to women in the areas of health, community building; harm reduction, housing, employment and basic needs. The women's program is open to all women and Trans identified people.
Currently we have 5 consistent programs: 'Join In, Stay Out' - a harm reduction support group for criminalized women; 'Theatre Troupe' - a harm reduction theatre group that meets twice a month and performs regularly; 'Nursing and Education Clinic', the third Wednesday of the month at PWA; 'Sexual Health, Harm Reduction and Agency Workshops' at Vanier Centre for Women; and 'Women's Choice', a program in which women can learn about things that they are interested in based on request (we have had a boxing workshop, celebration of our beauty day, etc). The PASAN WCP currently partners with over 10 other organizations.

WOMEN'S PRISON PROGRAM (Claudia)
This program delivers HIV 101, STI and HCV informational workshops for women in Grand Valley Institution, Vanier Centre for Women and the Central North Correctional Centre.  These workshops are always delivered from an anti-oppression and feminist perspective where we focus on the aspects of being a woman and how they can empower themselves around their sexual health.  Self-esteem building is a huge component in the workshops that we deliver.  Issues of mental health, sexual abuse, addiction and life traumas surface while women are in prison and there are limited services primarily in the provincial system in order for them to address them.

YOUTH OUTREACH AND EDUCATION PROGRAM (Trevor & Joan)
The main components of the program are to engage youth, in Community Residential Facilities (CRF), across Toronto, using 4 peer educators in the delivery of the programs. The program aim is to dialogue with youth around sexual health using the harm reduction philosophy. Some of the main issues that the populations struggle with are accurate sexual health information, risk reduction, substance use, adequate accommodation, physical and sexual abuse, and employment. In the next year, the program intends to identify specific programs for transgendered youth in some of the CRFs.

NEWSLETTER 'CELL COUNT' (Tom)
PASAN publishes 1500 copies of the newsletter 'Cell Count' quarterly. It is mailed out for free to clients on the outside, prisoners on the inside and to support organizations that bring them inside personally. It is also posted on our website for anyone to view, print or download. The newsletter comprises 16 pages that focus on prisoner stories, poetry, art, news, prisoner rights, harm reduction, and 60 penpal ads. Cell Count is mailed into 90+ institutions.

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