Men with violent behavior still wait several months on waiting lists before being able to join a therapy group. A situation considered worrying by stakeholders, and which persists despite significant government investments in the area of domestic violence due to the increase in requests for assistance.
“The only thing that keeps me awake is the waiting list,” slips Robert Cazelais, executive director of the Montreal organization Harmonie conjugale (formerly Pro-Gam), which helps men with behaviors violent. “When people call us, we sometimes have to tell them: not right away. Currently, about 40 men are on the organization’s waiting list.
And yet, when a man calls or goes to an organization, it is from that moment that he must be helped, notes Geneviève Landry, president of À coeur d’homme, an association that brings together 31 Quebec organizations from helping men struggling with violent behavior in a marital and family context.
“When a man asks for help in domestic violence, it’s usually because there’s a crisis that has just happened, so that’s where we should intervene,” explains the worker, who also directs the organization Entraide pour hommes located in Longueuil and Beloeil. Before joining a therapy group — the method deemed the most effective for treating perpetrators of domestic and family violence — a man must wait approximately 8 months on the waiting list in Longueuil.
At Option, in Montreal — where 80% of the clientele is in the judicial system — the wait is about 4 months. “It’s a lot, worries Clément Guèvremont, marriage and family therapist and founder of the organization. In the area of forced aid [une ordonnance de la cour oblige de nombreux hommes à suivre une thérapie], there is no zero risk. »
Men who have homicidal or suicidal risk factors are not left to their own devices, however, he reassures. An evaluation meeting is held shortly after the first contact. “If a man presents a high risk of acting out, we continue to see him in individual follow-up while waiting for a place in a group. We don’t let him down. »
Of the 12 clients who are currently on Option’s waiting list (some have been there since the end of October), 6 are receiving individual follow-up. “Our priority is to prevent femicides,” says the therapist.
Advertising campaign
At Option, as at Harmonie conjugale and many other organizations in the province, the number of therapy groups has increased since the start of the pandemic. Government investments of $15 million in 2020-2021, $17.5 million in 2021-2022 and $23 million in 2022-2023 to support organizations helping violent spouses have made it possible to hire new workers . “For two years, we have doubled our intervention teams in Quebec,” says Geneviève Landry.
But demand for help has followed the same curve, particularly in urban centres. “At the end of the day, you end up with the same number of men waiting,” she said. On the other hand, we see many more men each year. At Entraide pour hommes, for example, the number of therapy groups has increased from 8 to 14 per week since the start of the pandemic.
For the past two years, we have doubled our intervention teams in Quebec
Several factors explain this marked increase. There has, of course, been the pandemic, which has caused an increase in distress, and also society, which in general is less tolerant of domestic violence. But the success of the publicity campaign “La violence conjugale, ça s’stop là-tenant”, launched two years ago by the government of Quebec, would also have a lot to do with it.
This campaign was aimed directly at perpetrators of domestic violence to encourage them to seek help. “For the first time, we were speaking to the guys and they felt more challenged,” analyzes Geneviève Landry. “The good news is that awareness leads men to consult a lot more. But we cannot meet all the needs. »
However, in organizations that help men with violent behavior, as elsewhere, the shortage of labor is hitting hard. “We would be able [financièrement] to hire two or three more therapists” and to open more therapy groups, analyzes Clément Guèvremont of Option.
A situation that is all the more heartbreaking as the organizations, which have worked with limited budgets for years, finally have the financial means. “Before, for 35 years, we drove with the minimum [avant que le gouvernement hausse les subventions], we did what we could, summarizes the therapist. NOW [on a de l’argent]but [le défi c’est] to find staff and succeed in keeping them. »
Need help ? Consult the website www.acoeurdhomme.com.