barrier to recovery, and that in itself can be problematic for some.’
Pam Menzies Banton, area manager of Foundation 66, a London-wide
substance misuse service, welcomes the EACH initiative and believes there is
definitely a need for a residential rehabilitation service aimed at BME
communities.
‘There’s often a myth that we must move people out of the area they are in
in order for them to recover,’ she says. ‘But not everybody needs that. The
reintegration and recovery agenda in treatment is about involving the family and
existing networks, keeping people in their home communities and building their
networks so they’re close to family and what’s familiar, which can be a big aid to
recovery. If a person’s relationships and networks are strained because of drug
and alcohol misuse, moving them away can lead to further breakdown of those
relationships.’
But despite its potential impact, Randhawa says the project may not go
ahead. ‘Sadly, there’s a big question mark over it because of the commitment it
requires from primary care trusts [PCTs]. What we’ve got is capital but we need
revenue and so we need primary care trusts to buy into that. It may be that it’s
something that the local PCT decides is a low priority, especially with them likely
to be going in just over a year or two’s time. They may feel it’s a commitment
they can’t make with all the budget cuts.’
The question mark over the project echoes concerns expressed by other
professionals tackling alcohol misuse in BME communities, that short term
funding and under-investment undermine their efforts to plan ahead for
vulnerable clients. Commissioning services often don’t understand that reaching
these communities is a long process, they say. Developing health promotion
campaigns around alcohol misuse can be a challenging task, as ideas about
‘izzat’ and silence around alcohol mean that problem drinkers are often afraid
of being exposed and negatively labelled.
Don Shenker, chief executive of Alcohol Concern, says he empathises with
groups like EACH. ‘PCTs are meant to do a strategic needs assessment for their
areas, which is meant to include alcohol,’ he says. ‘Very few of them actually do –
and when they do, they don’t assess the full extent of dependency problems or
whether more hidden groups, like BME groups, have good access to treatment.
Part of the problem is the misconception that Asian people, for example, don’t
drink. But we know that members of BME groups do misuse alcohol, they’re just
doing so in a way that’s hidden because the consequences of being found out are
very negative.’
He adds: ‘Commissioning is too short term. It doesn’t allow alcohol services
to build up expertise. It can take three months to actually employ someone,
another three months for them to get going, and then you may have maybe six
months worth of time to get anything done and then you’re funding is cut.’
Providing treatment for drug misusers has certainly seemed like a higher
priority for government than helping those with alcohol-related problems.
According to 2004 figures from the Alcohol Needs Assessment Research
Project, 67 per cent of dependent or harmful drug users had access to
treatment, compared with 5.7 per cent for alcohol.
And figures from the Home Office show that the budget for the UK drug
strategy in 2005-6 was £1,483m, with no dedicated budget for a UK wide
alcohol strategy. But says Shenker, there may be cause for hope. Although the
latest drug strategy focused on illegal drugs, there was also a significant
emphasis on alcohol.
‘The new government actually appears to understand the issue of alcohol
dependency and is talking about it in a slightly more interested way than the last
government did,’ he says.
‘But what I’m worried about is that even if there is a recognition of the need
to expand alcohol services so that we can reach hidden groups of BME drinkers,
the current recession and public funding cuts will mean there will be even less
funding. Already, alcohol is a poor relation of drugs in terms of targets and
funding and what we’re hoping for is that the new government will provide a bit
more of a level playing field.’
DDN
Vic Motune is a freelance writer.
7 February 2011 |
drinkanddrugsnews
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BME services
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‘If an Asian woman is drinking, this
often may be linked to some other
problems... domestic violence,
mental health or family issues,
intergenerational issues, arranged
marriage, and cultural conflict.‘