Winnipeg man seeks addiction treatment in Cuba
Date: February 25, 2008
Posted At: www.cbc.ca
A Winnipeg man who travelled to Cuba to receive treatment for alcoholism says he was "blown away" by the treatment he received in the Caribbean nation.
"Steven," who is a member of Alcoholics Anonymous and asked that his name be withheld, said he had been kicked out of his home and was living in his car when he decided to seek help for his alcohol problem.
The wait for treatment in Manitoba was at least three months — time he didn't have, said the father of three who is in his 40s.
"I was running out of options. And running out of time, literally," he said.
Steven said he heard about a clinic in Cuba offering addiction services, so he turned to Choice Medical Services, a Winnipeg-based company that arranges medical tourism in Cuba, Costa Rica and Canada.
He paid between $5,500 and $6,000 per month for three months of intensive therapy with a group of doctors, psychiatrists and counsellors in a former tourist resort. The staff spoke Spanish; he communicated with them through an interpreter. |
