WORDS FROM THE ROOM ON MEANINGFUL SERVICE USER ENGAGEMENT ...
DDN CONFERENCE 2024
WORDS FROM THE ROOM ON MEANINGFUL SERVICE USER ENGAGEMENT ...
‘ WE NEED TO PROMOTE AND SUPPORT DRUG USER UNIONS – a drug user liberation front – and have outreach stations for naloxone kits .’ Delegate
‘ WE ( THE SECTOR ) ARE PART OF THE PROBLEM of stigmatising people . Without looking at ourselves first , we are in no position to educate others .’ Delegate
‘ AT TIMES OUR SERVICES ACT LIKE WE DON ’ T TRUST THE PEOPLE WE WORK WITH . Asking for their voice on some issues feels tokenistic .’ Delegate
‘ THERE ARE BARRIERS – not allowing service users to gain qualifications while on a script . Also , volunteering is not available to those on a script .’ Delegate
‘ CGL HELPED ME KICK DRINK . Now I volunteer for them and I love it .’ Delegate from Change Grow Live
‘ AT KALEIDOSCOPE WE HAVE LIVED EXPERIENCE ON OUR BOARD but we are not setting up a shadow board of people with living experience . Our co-production workers are employed directly by Kaleidoscope and not by commissioned contracts , to set people free .’ Delegate from Kaleidoscope
‘ I FEEL COMPLETELY ENGAGED WITH MY SERVICE ( VIA / i- access ). The only barriers encountered were the waiting times ( had to be patient , which was understandable ). Examples of good practice were their meetings – one-to-one , group or online . You are made to feel welcome with no added pressure to talk if you don ’ t want to or don ’ t feel confident enough . The lived experience within the service removes barriers or boundaries to getting reconnected .’ Delegate from VIA
‘ NATIONAL CAMPAIGNS ARE DILUTED AND WEAKENED by large nationals prioritising reputation over truth .’ Delegate
‘ HOMELESS PEOPLE HAVE ROUTINES TO ENGAGE with services in their area . Understand their routines and you ’ ll know where to go – each area is different . In prisons results can take longer than the prison sentence , so people don ’ t get their results . Connect results to local drug services . Even if the person doesn ’ t engage , sooner or later they will engage for MAT [ medication assisted treatment ].’ Delegate
‘ WHEN IT COMES TO PLANNING TREATMENT , letting service users have more input will be more effective . I relapsed five times because I was put on methadone and buprenorphine when I know Buvidal would work better for me . How much money was wasted in that time ? I ’ m now off prescription and still clean . I moved to Preston and the clinician let me plan my own detox and it worked – I was invested . Peer to peer outreach would increase uptake – ex-addicts talking to people they used with to increase engagement . Nothing speaks louder than proof !’ Delegate
‘ GAMBLING NEEDS TO BE TALKED ABOUT and signposted more through networking .’ Delegate
‘ THERE TOO MUCH RED TAPE . We need a lot more pathways to recovery . Don ’ t forget the wider family is also a recovery family and needs to be supported and helped a whole lot more .’ Delegate
‘ WE NEED TO BE NON- JUDGMENTAL , friendly , personcentred , and thinking about equality , diversity , inclusion , lived experience , education , flexibility … the barrier is still stigma .’ Delegate
‘ I DON ’ T FEEL TRULY ENGAGED OR VALUED . It feels more like having to fit into treatment rather than treatment being designed around me . The barriers include blame shifting – “ Oh , that ’ s what we ’ ve always done ”, “ There ’ s no money for that ”, “ That ’ s the NHS way ”. I feel like a troublemaker – but we are the experts ! We need to be in charge ! What we need to do is : - remove the stigma
- stop women feeling like they ’ ll lose their children if they ask for help
- reach out to peer-led organisations
- don ’ t have staff at meetings / groups
- make sure people know about what ’ s available
- make it fun – give rewards , make it social .’ Delegate
‘ I DID FEEL ENGAGED AND VALUED – BUT ONLY WHEN I HAD STOPPED USING . Appointments are a barrier – expecting people with drug misuse issues to make appointments and having ‘ scripts ’ held over our heads . We need a choice of treatment scripts – we ’ re not able to direct our own care . Good practice would be working with other agencies and having housing workers . We also need peer support , volunteering opportunities and detox for prescription meds .’ Delegate
‘ AT RED ROSE RECOVERY in Lancashire 97 per cent of 120 staff have lived experience . We are sector-leading and give a voice to the voiceless . We are nurtured and empowered to create change .’ Delegate from Red Rose Recovery
‘ WE SHOULD BE OPEN , FRIENDLY AND NON- JUDGMENTAL , using positives instead of negatives . We need to be able to give statistical evidence showing the scale of the problem and how we can reduce it effectively .’ Delegate from B3
18 • DRINK AND DRUGS NEWS • SEPTEMBER 2024 WWW . DRINKANDDRUGSNEWS . COM