Review of Rehabilitation Services

Posted on 02/12/2011 by ATODA

Review of the need to expand alcohol and other drug (AOD) rehabilitation services

Purpose: To review drug rehabilitation services in the ACT and recommend changes to services to ensure access to the most cost-effective, appropriate, evidence-informed services possible. The ACT Government responded to a recommendation from the Estimates Standing Committee in agreeing to conduct the review and table the report in Legislative Assembly.

The review is to be completed and with the Health Minister by March 2012. The review will be completed within the broader context of the ACT Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Strategy 2010 – 2014.

The primary focus of the review will be community based residential rehabilitation services including:

  • 38 beds for men and women operated by the Salvation Army – Canberra Recovery Service
  • 44 beds for families and single adults operated by Karralika Programs Inc
  • 10 beds for young people up to the age of 17 years operated by the Ted Noffs Foundation
  • 10 beds for adults ( combined with withdrawal beds) at Arcadia House operated by DIRECTIONS ACT

Consideration will also be given to SOLARIS the therapeutic community (TC) operated by Karralika Programs Inc and Corrective Services in the Alexander Maconochie Centre and progress made towards the establishment of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander residential rehabilitation facility scheduled for completion in June 2013. Consideration will also be given to other types of AOD services that interface with rehabilitation services.

Methodology: A capacity building approach will be adopted to the review. The review will include:

  1. Epidemiological analyses of the prevalence of AOD misuse and estimates of demand on the service system.
  2. Review of the international and local evidence relating to outcomes.
  3. Mapping and analyses of services, pathways into the system and through the system and identifying opportunities to strengthen services.
  4. Consultations with key referrers, consumers and their family members/ friends about their experiences of the service system, whether the services meet the needs of those seeking AOD rehabilitation and opportunities to strengthen services.
  5. No more than 10 recommendations will be developed highlighting opportunities to strengthen access to AOD rehabilitation services in the ACT.

Review Team: The small review team will include:

  • Andrew Biven, with extensive experience working in therapeutic communities, including The Woolshed in South Australia and The Buttery in NSW.
  • Dr Rod McQueen, Lyndon House NSW, which operates both a withdrawal unit and a therapeutic community.

If you want to know more about the review or how you might be able to get involved, contact Denise Ryan in the Health Directorate ACT Government. Telephone: (02) 6207 9110  email: denise.ryan@act.gov.au