Salvatore
This is a very, very good point. And one that is overdue to be
addressed. As it happens, I've been representing the EFTC on the
Community of Communities working party on addiction TCs. Basically, the
CoC (part of the Royal College of Psychiatrists) are looking to develop
a peer-review system for quality control of addiction TCs. We're
obviously anxious to ansure that this fits with other initiatives:
Georges Van der Straten has been working on a scheme for formalising
staff training placements called ECEtt. Information on the ECEtt
initiative is available through Trempoline:
http://www.trempoline.be/en/b3.htm
In addition, as you know, EFTC has operated for some time a system of
peer visiting new members. There has been a fair amount of discussion
at the EFTC Board about formalising this into an advisory-inspectorate
system incorporating EFTC and EWODOR members. We had been about to
start putting together a formal application for EC funding when we heard
about the Community of Communities initiative. I expect that this will
be a major item on the Board's agenda when it next meets in Ljubljana.
All told, we need to bring these various initiatives together into a
coherent whole which establishes that TCs really are TCs and really do
what they say they do! As part of the planning for the Ljubljana
conference, I've been in correspondence with personnel at the EMCDDA.
Interestingly, they are looking to establishing various quality control
initiatives Europe-wide for drug treatment services. They're very
interested in our initiatives
Further information on Community of Communities is available on the
Royal College of Psychiatrist's website:
http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/crtu/centreforqualityimprovement/communityofcom
munities/addictions.aspx
Rowdy Yates
Senior Research Fellow
Scottish Addiction Studies
Sociology, Social Policy & Criminology Section
Department of Applied Social Science
University of Stirling
W: http://www.dass.stir.ac.uk/sections/scot-ad/
T: +44(0)1786 - 467737
M: 07894- 864897
NOTE: EFTC Conference, 6 - 9 June 2007, Ljubljana, Slovenia
W: http://www.eftc-europe.com/conferentie/
-----Original Message-----
From: Therapeutic Communities
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of RAIMO
SALVATORE
Sent: 09 March 2007 11:47
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: TCs -our chequered past
dear friends,
you touched a very sensityve issue, making it part of the history of tc,
and I think this is partially right. But we have to be clear when we
talk about early days, do we mean the the fifties, sixties, seventies,
eighties... and how many of this kind of "treatment" were put into
action in places called tc, but most of us would have difficulties in
finding a human and humanistic approach.
There is still a lack in the definition of what a tc is, what the
standards and criterias are. Sometimes it seems that there is this kind
of thought: men run fast; deers run fast: men and deers are the same.
Every organisation which has a building in which there live people with
addiction problems, feel to call itself a tc and has the right to do it,
as long there is no need for a certification about the process and not
only the procedures. So I'm sure that in the past and also in the
present, abuses happen in places called tc.
Talking about history is important, but we should also look at the
present time.
I don't want to seem to critical, because I'm not. What I would wish,
desire, aim...is to give a value and weight on the terminology TC and to
make it impossible to use this brand for organisations which are many
things but not tc.
So I welcome this catartic sharing but it would be great if we don't
limit ourself to become aware of our history, but also to develope a
kind of "lable". tc is to precious, to be put int the same pot (it's a
german way of saying) with things which nothing has to do with it.
salvatore
Rowdy Yates ha scritto:
> Hi
>
> There has been a fair amount of discussion on the list about some of
> the past abuses of the TC system - particularly the issue of using the
> structure to hurt, humiliate and bully residents. This is a very real
> issue and I have pointed out in other posts that on other lists, the
> TC approach is often regarded with less than enthusiasm because of
> stories of this type of abuse.
>
> Now, that's not a reason to avoid re-visiting them. At least on this
> list members are committed to the TC principles so we can discuss
> these problems without having to spend too much time defending the
> overall approach.
>
> My view is that therapeutic environments are not necessarily the same
> as supportive environments. That is to say that whilst they must
> always be safe (and felt to be safe by those within them) they can
> legitimately be challenging and stressful. However, that's not the
> same as sanctioning behaviour that is designed to hurt and humiliate.
> Humiliating residents can never be acceptable and should never be
> tolerated and I think we can create working environments for residents
> that are challenging without being personally hurtful. And we have to
> remember (and in my view, some TCs have often forgotten this) that it
> is in the daily life in the community - not in groups or individual
> counselling - that the main work of a TC takes place. That is crucial
> to the working of a TC and we need to resist the popular image of
> heavy confrontational groups being the pivot for personal change.
>
> That said, we also need to think about all aspects of the TC - and
> most of us are doing this much of the time. We need - as Stewart has
> remarked - to avoid throwing away something useful, even fundamental
> simply because we've forgotten why it was there. An example. I was
> recently told in a TC that they had "done away with" the old
> "meaningless" language "because in the real world, people don't talk
> like that". Well no, you won't find someone at the bus stop saying,
> "Can I make you aware that you've just dropped some litter?" But
> surely that's the point. People on entering a TC should feel that it
> is in some ways different to the outside world (at the very least it
> should be more honest). Part of that difference can be expressed in
> the use of different rituals and language.
>
> I passionately believe in the model and in the possibility of
> restoring the model to its rightful place within the treatment network
> (in those countries where the TC star has waned), but to do this we do
> need to explore our past and be realistic about what we want to throw
> away and what we want to keep for the journey. Eric Broekaert and Don
> Ottenburg, some years ago, wrote an excellent paper on what were the
> fundamental elements of the TC approach, but I am sure that Eric would
> agree that this is a "work in progress". We need to continue to
> discuss what is fundamental to our approach and how that fits with the
> approaches taken within the wider treatment network.
>
> Sorry. Another stream-of-conciousness jumble from your List-owner but
> I do want us to discuss these issues more thoroughly
>
> */ /*
>
> */Rowdy Yates
> Senior Research Fellow
> Scottish Addiction Studies
> Sociology, Social Policy & Criminology Section Department of Applied
> Social Science University of Stirling/*
>
> */W: /**_http://www.dass.stir.ac.uk/sections/scot-ad/_*
>
> *_*//*_*
>
> *_*/T: /+44(0)1786 - 467737*_*
>
> *_*//*_*
>
> *_*/M: /07894- 864897*_*
>
> *_*NOTE: EFTC Conference, 6 - 9 June 2007, Ljubljana, Slovenia*_*
>
> *_*W: *_*_http://www.eftc-europe.com/conferentie/_**
>
> *_ _*
>
> *_-- _*
>
> *_ _*
>
> *_The University of Stirling is a university established in Scotland
> by charter at Stirling, FK9 4LA. Privileged/Confidential Information
> may be contained in this message. If you are not the addressee
> indicated in this message (or responsible for delivery of the message
> to such person), you may not disclose, copy or deliver this message to
> anyone and any action taken or omitted to be taken in reliance on it,
> is prohibited and may be unlawful. In such case, you should destroy
> this message and kindly notify the sender by reply email. Please
> advise immediately if you or your employer do not consent to Internet
> email for messages of this kind._*
>
> *_
> _*
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> --
> *_
> No virus found in this incoming message.
> Checked by AVG Free Edition.
> Version: 7.5.446 / Virus Database: 268.18.8/714 - Release Date:
> 08/03/2007 10.58
> _*
--
The University of Stirling is a university established in Scotland by
charter at Stirling, FK9 4LA. Privileged/Confidential Information may
be contained in this message. If you are not the addressee indicated
in this message (or responsible for delivery of the message to such
person), you may not disclose, copy or deliver this message to anyone
and any action taken or omitted to be taken in reliance on it, is
prohibited and may be unlawful. In such case, you should destroy this
message and kindly notify the sender by reply email. Please advise
immediately if you or your employer do not consent to Internet email
for messages of this kind.
|
