Kackaamin Family Development Centre

Kackaamin Family Development Centre is one of only three Indigenous Family Treatment programs in Canada, located at 7830 Beaver Creek Road in Port Alberni, British Columbia. Operating as a non-profit for over 51 years and funded by the First Nations Health Authority, Island Health, BC Ministry of Children and Family Development, and other partners, Kackaamin provides culturally grounded residential addiction recovery for First Nations individuals and families — primarily those of First Nations ancestry or connected to a First Nations person. Set in a safe, quiet natural setting surrounded by forest, Kackaamin offers a healing environment where culture, spirituality, and professional care come together.

Family Programs and Core Residential Treatment

Kackaamin’s Core and Family Programs provide 6-week intensive residential sessions for individuals and families navigating addiction and its impacts. The family-inclusive model recognizes that addiction affects the entire family unit, and that lasting recovery is most sustainable when families heal together. Culturally grounded practices drawn from Nuu-Chah-Nulth traditions are woven through the programming, alongside individual and group counselling, to address alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, methamphetamine, opioid, and other substance use challenges in ways that are meaningful and culturally safe for participants.

Women’s Supportive Recovery Program

Kackaamin’s Women’s Supportive Recovery program provides 10 beds dedicated to women in early recovery. The program offers 12-Step support, cultural programming, and individual counselling in a gender-specific, supportive environment. Women receive the time and space to explore their recovery journey through both Western evidence-based approaches and Indigenous healing practices — a combination that honours the whole person and the full complexity of their healing needs.

Rebuilding the Circle and Cultural Healing

The Rebuilding The Circle (RTC) program addresses the impacts of sexual abuse on individuals and families, integrating Western therapeutic approaches with Nuu-Chah-Nulth healing practices to support survivors on their healing journey. Kackaamin’s deep commitment to cultural and spiritual practices makes it a uniquely capable resource for Indigenous people whose recovery journey is inseparable from their cultural identity and community connections. For First Nations individuals and families on Vancouver Island seeking culturally safe, family-centred addiction treatment, Kackaamin Family Development Centre offers an irreplaceable form of healing.