21 July 2020
Addiction: Moving from stigma to solution
21 July 2020 – Today marks the launch of the biggest centrally coordinated addiction treatment movement on the African continent. The movement is spearheaded by the South African National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (SANCA).
“People afflicted with substance use disorders have long been seen as having some sort of personal weakness,” says Adrie Vermeulen, National Coordinator of SANCA. “Evidence however shows that substance dependence is not due to a lack of personal willpower, but due to a medical disorder.”
In South Africa, the fourth National Drug Master Plan (NDMP 2019 - 2024) was drafted in accordance with the Prevention of and Treatment for Substance Abuse Act (Act No. 70 of 2008). Other independent programmes and projects focus on specific elements addressed in the NDMP.
Despite this, a gap remains between the existence of the formal documentation and its practical, coordinated implementation by addiction treatment fraternity – doctors, nurses, social workers, law enforcement, those undergoing treatment and their families.
The ADDICTION 2021 movement – which will culminate in a collaborative conference in 2021 – is not aimed at replacing or opposing any existing policies and frameworks explains Vermeulen. “It is intended to bring everyone in the treatment fraternity together to create practical implementation work plans and protocols for effective communication.”
“We see this movement from a fragmented to a blended approach as the best way to bridge the gap between policy and implementation,” says Dr Goodman Sibeko, the Chair of the Conference and the head of the Addiction Psychiatry division of the University of Cape Town.
This blended approach is intended to significantly reduce the impact of substance dependence disorders on society, communities, families, healthcare and law enforcement.
“Now is the time to inspire a movement for change so we can all work together to tackle addiction with socially inclusive, responsive and individualised solutions,” says Dr Sibeko.
The year-long movement and conference (scheduled for 21-23 July 2021) will result in an Annual Africa Addiction Guide. The planned content for the Guide includes a comprehensive exploration of the existence and closing of gaps between the existence and implementation of treatment frameworks, protocols for the centralisation of data and communication between various members of the treatment fraternity, and recommendations on how to best measure the impact of various treatment plans.
In addition, the outcomes of the movement will include a workplan to achieve the resolutions of the conference and increase transparency and accountability across all relevant stakeholders.
“The time for unity in fighting the effects of addiction starts now,” says Vermeulen. “Affected individuals – along with their families – must be empowered to regain their sense of self-worth and dignity.”
“We have to make them active collaborators in the design, implementation, and evaluation of treatment plans. We can only really do this everyone collaborates to understand the substance dependence epidemic better and using best research evidence and clinical expertise to create practical and sustainable harm reduction strategies. This needs to be backed up by education and advocacy based on facts instead of stigma or personal agendas, as well as relevant changes to legislation, policy and enforcement.”
“In the end it’s all about helping those suffering with the medical condition called addiction to step out of the darkness and into the light.”