Mark Amy Treatment Centre

Mark Amy Treatment Centre, operated by Wood Buffalo Wellness Society, is a 14-bed residential addiction treatment facility located 25 minutes south of Fort McMurray, Alberta. The centre serves a co-ed clientele with a particular focus on First Nations healing, offering a 56-day residential program that weaves cultural reconnection, therapeutic support, and personal growth into a unified recovery experience. Funded through the National Native Alcohol and Drug Abuse Program (NNADAP), Mark Amy provides accessible, culturally grounded care for Indigenous and non-Indigenous residents of the Wood Buffalo region.

56-Day Residential Program with Cultural Integration

Mark Amy’s 56-day program is built on the understanding that lasting recovery requires more than abstinence — it requires reconnection to identity, culture, and community. The program blends First Nations cultural practices with evidence-based therapeutic approaches including 12-step programming, holistic therapies, and co-occurring disorder treatment. Relapse prevention, drug education, and individual and group substance abuse counselling are core components of the program. Clients are required to be sober for seven days prior to admission; no on-site detox is available.

Holistic and Faith-Based Healing

The centre’s holistic approach addresses the physical, emotional, spiritual, and cultural dimensions of addiction and recovery. Faith-based programming and Indigenous cultural practices are integrated alongside clinical counselling and aftercare planning. Under the clinical leadership of Shavel Yapp-Edwards (AS & BS in Family Life Education and Social Work), the Mark Amy team delivers compassionate, individualized care in a remote, nature-connected setting that naturally supports reflection and healing.

Virtual Counselling and Community Reach

Beyond its residential program, Mark Amy Treatment Centre extends its reach through virtual counselling for addiction, increasing access for individuals across the vast Wood Buffalo region who may not be able to attend in person. Aftercare support and assessment services round out the continuum of care. As a registered non-profit charitable organization funded by NNADAP, the centre is part of a national network of Indigenous-led addiction treatment, delivering culturally safe services to one of Canada’s most geographically remote and resource-rich communities.