Welcome to McDougall House – A “second stage” treatment facility for women in recovery.

Our female gender-specific program offers safety and security emotionally, mentally and physically.  Conveniently located in a residential neighbourhood in Edmonton, our facility is a comfortable home-like environment.  There are 9 bedrooms – 6 single rooms and 3 double rooms for a total of 12 beds.  

We provide long-term residential treatment in a compassionate and loving environment. We are accredited with Accreditation Canada and have Certified and Registered Addiction Counsellors with over 45 years experience combined. We have a full-time cook who offers home cooked and healthy meals and snacks. The House is staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year – so clients always have someone to talk to if needed.

We are an abstinence based residential addiction treatment facility for women and, because we are a second-stage treatment facility, all of our clients will have already taken steps towards their recovery by completing a short-term (for example 30 day) live-in treatment program.  These early steps help to prepare women for ongoing work required to better understand and address the dynamics behind their addictions.  Length of stay is usually 3 months but there is flexibility to stay shorter or longer.

The McDougall House program is trauma-informed and designed using evidence-based best practices.  While the programs are structured around workshops, group and individual counselling, every client designs her recovery path with the help of her counsellor.

Clients are supported in their recovery through:

• Assessment and treatment planning;
• Individual and group counselling as well as goal setting sessions;
• Educational workshops specifically designed for the needs of women, such as trauma, relapse prevention, self-esteem, communication, boundaries, relationships, feelings, values, guest speakers, etc.
• Attending a Twelve-Step Program (AA, NA, CA meetings) or other self-help program in the community;
• Participating in experiential learning and a hands-on approach to living sober.

Clients are encouraged to develop a healthy support network in the community by:

• Establishing support through obtaining a sponsor affiliated with a Twelve-Step program or other self-help groups;
• Establishing ongoing counselling support through Alberta Health Services (Addiction Counsellor) and/or other professionals;
• Creating relationships in the community which encourage sober social and recreational activities.

Guiding Principles:

• We believe addictions treatment and recovery should be abstinence-based and provided in a safe environment.
• Women in recovery should be treated with dignity and respect.
• Recovery needs to be approached in a holistic manner, looking at the whole person.
• Recovery plans are individualized for each client, to address their particular needs and goals; it is a mutual contract between counsellor and client.
• Women collaborate in their own recovery process and need to be empowered to do so.
• Women benefit from the support and the therapeutic programming provided within our residential setting.
• The success of treatment requires continued evaluation from the client’s perspective, we use a client centered approach.

As an Alberta resident with an Alberta Health Care Number, there is no fee to attend McDougall House. Meals and linens are provided here so a client would just need to purchase her own personal items (hygiene, snacks, bus pass, etc.).

We’re here to help women rebuild their lives.

For more than 50 years, McDougall House has helped women struggling with substance misuse to find their way from hopelessness to hope. The treatment program offered by McDougall House is unlike any other. It is designed to meet the needs of the women we serve.