Planned Parenthood Regina facing barriers to finding new location, asks for patience

Planned Parenthood Regina has been without a location since the beginning of May. Its absence has left a hole in sexual health services in the city, but the organization's executive director said it is zeroing in on a new home. 

"The biggest thing that we want to get across to people is that we are OK. We're going to be OK. I have every faith that we will be back and serving folks as soon as we possibly can. What we really need is support and patience," said Risa Payant, executive director of Planned Parenthood Regina. 

When fully operational, the organization provides accessible contraceptives, along with sexual health programs and services, to the city and south Saskatchewan community with a focus on youth, LGBTQ people and those without health insurance.

People can access the sexual health clinic without a health card.

Right now the organization can only offer services over the phone, such as STI consults, contraceptive consults and references for IUDs. But the lack of a physical location has left some gaps. 

"We were selling birth control at-cost, which is significantly reduced from what you would get at most pharmacies. So if you're someone, especially a youth, who doesn't have access to benefits and drug prescription coverage, then they were really counting on that."

Payant also said that not having a location has been confusing for some potential clients.

"We do still get messages, even last week, of people who went to our old location, saw we weren't there. You know, they're running around the city trying to find us, trying to figure out what's going on. And so that's obviously heartbreaking."

Issues finding a new location

Planned Parenthood was informed in April that it had to leave the location at 1920B Francis Street by the beginning of May. Payant said the news was sudden. 

"It wasn't a good fit for us and hadn't been for some time. The landlord was kind of done working with us on some of the issues that we had and just thought it was better that we part ways."

Payant said she could not comment specifically on what the issues were. 

She took over the role of executive director in mid-March. 

"There has been a lot of upheaval at Planned Parenthood, and I'm definitely committing to making sure that moving forward we're as stable as possible."

Payant said the new location has to be central, accessible by transit, and able to accommodate both a clinic and an office. 

She said some landlords have been unwilling to work with them because of what the organization does, "which I think speaks to some of the stigma around the work that we do in sexual health here in our province."

Payant said many people have misconceptions around what services Planned Parenthood actually provides. Planned Parenthood does not offer surgical abortions. 

"Planned Parenthood is in the news so much in the States and there is a conservative kind of group of landlords here in our city who just want nothing to do with us."

Payant said there are still landlords in the city willing to lease to the organization. It's just about finding the right fit and the right price. 

Funding concerns

Leasing and operational costs are rising, and Payant said Planned Parenthood's funding is "pretty stagnant."

"I think it's no secret that we're dealing with some funding issues," she said. "We do have to be mindful of making sure that we can cover the costs."

Planned Parenthood gets its primary funding from the province's Ministry of Health and the Saskatchewan Health Authority.

"They're very generous with their support. We appreciated it a ton. It also needs to be increased."

Payant said the organization needs to increase education and public campaigns.

In a statement to the CBC, the Ministry of Health said that it will provide Planned Parenthood Regina with $167,000 for clinical services in the 2022-23 year.

"We thank Planned Parenthood for their ongoing work to support Saskatchewan residents," read the statement.

"Health funding must be balanced within the context of the many competing priorities for health-care dollars. Any funding requests would be considered as part of the annual budget process."

The Regina Sexual Health Clinic tests for all STIs, including syphilis testing that requires prompt attention for treatment if confirmed positive. 

"The Ministry of Health and Saskatchewan Health Authority have been using social media campaigns to reach audiences in our province and encourage them to get tested and take personal protective measures."

While Payant said Planned Parenthood Regina cannot rely strictly on goodwill, it has received more donations and support in the past few weeks.

University of Regina affected

Robin Hilton, sexual health outreach co-ordinator with the University of Regina Students' Union, said Planned Parenthood's location closure has directly affected students.

Together, the two organizations offered free sexual health clinics to students once a month. A nurse practitioner from Planned Parenthood would attend these clinics. The students' union also partnered with Planned Parenthood on educational campaigns, including raising awareness about STI stigma. 

Hilton said the clinics were extremely beneficial to students as they were not in a medical setting, but a casual, campus setting. 

"It was a really non-intimidating environment for students to access sexual health care. And we felt that was really important," Hilton said.

"We found that a lot of international students who hadn't yet gotten their health care card were able to access the services."

The clinics included a sexual health panel, STI screening, pregnancy testing and birth control consultation.

When Planned Parenthood closed, it had to lay off nearly its entire staff, so it could not longer accommodate the U of R. 

"We're really noticing that gap and and have been looking to find someone to fill that gap since then. And we just haven't been able to do so. So we haven't been able to have our clinic for a few months now, which is really unfortunate," said Hilton. 

Hilton said she hopes Planned Parenthood finds its new home soon, so the partnership can continue.

"They're a vital and important part of the community."