ALCOHOLICS AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE PROGRAM
(Thika Rehabilitation Home)
Goal
Providing psychosocial support to the affected and the victims of
alcohol and substance abuse with an aim of reducing stigma and rehabilitating
them back into society
Preamble
Alcohol and drug abuse has become an acute and growing problem in
Kenya. Research shows that the scourge is affecting the most productive age
between 18 and 45 years with a predilection toward the male more than the
female. The social economic impact of this trend is devastating touching the
economic, the social and the health sphere of society.
Families have particularly been hit hard by the scourge. Research shows
that alcohol and drug abuse (ADA) is the leading cause of family breakdown. By
affecting men more than women, ADA is disrupting traditional gender roles,
increasing the percentage of female headed households. Women have to shoulder
full responsibility for families, becoming the main providers of financial,
social and emotional stability of the family in the absence of the father. This
has compounded the problem by removing the father figure from the boy child
during their formative years. The boys are growing without role models and are
more likely to become alcohol and substance abusers themselves. According to
NACADA, children whose father use alcohol are 2.7 times more likely to have
consumed alcohol than if their fathers do not use alcohol (Nacada 2011).
ADA impinges
greatly on the family
income and at
advanced stages causes
increased levels of tension
and economic dependency
leading to poverty and loss of
opportunities for growth and advancement of both the victim and his/her family. Research by NACADA shows that ADA has a direct correlation
to domestic violence and divorce (Nacada, 2011)
By targeting the youth, it leads to increasing levels of
unemployability, health and educational challenges, loss of productivity,
insecurity and loss of investor confidence among other things.
Excessive drinking accounts for substantial cognitive impairment, many
of them irreversible (Brown & Tapert, 2004). According to Barlow (2000),
alcohol is a threat to family life and to harmonious interpersonal relations.
Alcohol is linked to crime, broken homes, poor workmanship, unemployment, and a
host of other social and moral evils. Many alcoholics
experience notable contrasting
changes of the ‘downhill’ career (NACADA 2011).
The causes of alcohol and substance abuse have been identified as
idleness, peer pressure and lack of parental guidance and pressure to succeed
for youth in Nairobi.
There is therefore a need for a concerted effort to deal with this
issue. The church has been identified as the institution most looked up to for
social, spiritual and emotional well being of society. It therefore has a
responsibility and a unique call to focus on and set up programs to ameliorate
the consequences of alcohol and drug abuse, especially on the family unit.
Although the church has been grappling with the problems that result
from ADA by offering personal spiritual and emotional counseling to those affected,
it has done immensely well in bringing awareness and spiritual direction in the crisis. Thika rehabilitation home is now partnering churches, mosques and organized groups to facilitate a holistic approach in order to sustainably deal with the various aspects
of the problem.
Thika rehabilitation home is a level 3 treatment facility for substance and behavioral addictions. We are involved in outreach, treatment and aftercare and therefore uniquely placed to bring together churches, agencies and volunteers in a
network that is able to offer a holistic approach to the multifaceted problems
emanating from alcohol and substance abuse.
Specific objectives
1.
Build a network
of churches, agencies and volunteers specifically focused on the issue of ADA
2.
Reach out and
offer support to victims of alcohol and substance abuse in Thika Kiandutu and nearby slums.
3.
Reduce stigma and
provide a platform for sharing to the affected (families and friends) and
victims of alcohol and substance abuse through awareness building and provision
of information in churches and other forums available
4.
Provide opportunity for volunteers to reach
out to those affected and the victims of alcohol and substance abuse to hasten
their rehabilitation and integration back into society
Activities
1.
Carry out
outreach activities in Juja, Witeithie, Thika environs, Kiandutu, Makongeni area, to victims of alcoholand substance abuse
2.
Provide
professional help to the victims of alcohol and substance abuse in target areas.
3.
Provide personal
development and life skills training to victims of alcohol and substance abuse.
4.
Identify victims
of alcohol and substance abuse who are ready for admission into a
rehabilitation center and support them financially where necessary
5.
Carry out an
awareness campaign in churches in Thika, witeithie, Juja, through
talks and provision of brochures and posters
Target areas
Thika town, Makongeni, Juja, and environs
Partners
·
Churches in
target area
· Public administration Kenya police
· Kenya police
· Volunteers
Mobile: 0702103841/ 0738317630 | www.psychosocial.co.ke | Face book page: www.facebook.com/rehab.home | twitter : @ThikaRehab |
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