Plans for future of Drug and Alcohol Services on the table in Muswellbrook today
22 May 2007
Staff from Drug and Alcohol Clinical Services, other Hunter New England Health Services and key external service providers will converge on Muswellbrook today for a workshop to further develop the Hunter New England Health Drug and Alcohol Clinical Services Plan.
Clients of Hunter New England Health’s Drug and Alcohol Clinical Services will be the beneficiaries of improved service delivery through the development of the plan, which will shape the way these services are provided in the next five years.
A series of workshops have been held to develop the plan and today’s workshop will see the finishing touches put on the draft before it is circulated to key internal and external stakeholders for comment.
Area Director of Drug and Alcohol Clinical Services for Hunter New England Health Dr Adrian Dunlop said he expected the plan would deliver a strong foundation for how Drug and Alcohol clinical services will be provided in the future.
“Essentially, we’re looking at how we can deliver a drug and alcohol service that is flexible in approach and responsive to client needs right across the Hunter New England Health region,” Dr Dunlop said.
“It is about improving access to our services and increasing the focus on health promotion and early intervention strategies and prevention,” he said.
“I think we’ll come up with a good plan that includes a strong focus on how we can engage clients and consumers in the development of our services.”
The development of the plan includes consultation with stakeholders in a number of ways including individual interviews, service profiling, surveys, focus groups, community meetings and workshops.
The plan is due for completion in July this year and provides the future direction of Hunter New England Health Drug and Alcohol Clinical Services, such as:
- Central Intake and Referral Service
- Harm Minimisation Program
- Community counselling
- Withdrawal services
- Pharmacotherapy service
- Magistrates Early Referral Into Treatment (MERIT) Program
- High-risk Antenatal Clinical Services
- GP Liaison
- Consultation Liaison
- Early Intervention
- Inpatient and outreach programs
Contact: Shannon Ramadge
Phone: 4939 2216